Top asparagus tips for busy veg beds

What should I do to prepare my asparagus beds for the spring? Karen White, Winchester

November is a great time of year to prepare asparagus for the following season. First, cut back any dried fern stalks and remove any weeds lurking in the bed. Then add a rich manure or fertiliser with equal parts of lime, rock phosphate or bone meal. Finally, apply an organic mulch and your asparagus will be looking good for spring.

Hedgehogs have to be our most adorable native mammal – and they are also a gardener’s best friend, gobbling up pesky slugs, snails and caterpillars.

So at this time of year, good gardeners should pay special attention to these amazing little animals.

I work closely with the British Hedgehog Preservation Society as an ambassador for the great work they do to protect them. But we can all do our bit in our gardens to make life easier for these hibernating heroes.

Sadly, recent findings suggest the number of hedgehogs in the UK has fallen by more than half since 2000.

It’s believed to be due to the urbanisation of gardens, which reduces hedgerows and important habitats, as well as their insect prey.

But gardeners are staging a fightback and that decline has slowed in recent years. And there’s lots you can do to help convert your outdoor space into a place hedgehogs love.

WELCOME HOME

Crucially, you need to make your garden accessible. As you may have gathered from their rather telling

It stops them from getting muddled and wandering into roads