Solution of the month

Q What can I sow in the garden this month? CARRIE ADAMSON, DEVIZES, WILTSHIRE

A This is the perfect month for sowing hardy annuals. Although you can sow them in spring, a September sowing gives far better results because the plants will have already produced good root systems by the time spring arrives, when they start into growth again. You can sow them now, directly on the soil, and the plants won’t try to bloom before winter but they’ll be big enough to survive the cold and wet. Among the best to sow in late summer are calendulas, nigella, eschscholzia (in sheltered areas), larkspur, candytuft, limnanthes and mignonette.