GARDEN WORK: May 3rd-9th

THE recent, lovely rains falling onto the nicely-warmed soil have I provided ideal conditions for a great spurt of growth

THE recent, lovely rains falling onto the nicely-warmed soil have I provided ideal conditions for a great spurt of growth. But it's not only garden plants that flourish in such an atmosphere: weeds grow fat and happy and faster than their cultivated cousins. Get rid of them now, before they set seed and increase a hundredfold.

Winter and early-spring flowering shrubs - forsythia, kerria, and winter-flowering jasmine and spirea - should be pruned now to encourage a bushier growth next year, and more flowers. Red hot pokers (Kniphofta) and ornamental grasses are liable to lie down and die if they are disturbed in autumn or early spring while the ground is cold. Dig up and divide them now if the clumps have become congested, or if you just fancy more of them. Replant in soil that has been rejuvenated with well-rotted manure, garden compost and a handful of bone meal or organic fertiliser. Water in well.