Plant winter radishes now and they will be ready to harvest in just eight weeks | Gardening advice

Winter radishes are notably different from the smaller, brighter and often punchier ones you can grow from spring onwards. Winter radishes are left to grow for longer, so they can become larger, and while they can be eaten raw, there are many recipes for cooking them in soups and stir-fries, or roasting them like other … Read more

Get a dog – or just a dog sign: 14 expert ways to protect your home | Life and style

Whether you are going away, moving house, or have just become a bit complacent, there are many simple things that you can do to make your home safer. Here, security experts advise on the best ways to avoid being burgled. Be more secure than your neighbour “Thieves are generally opportunists,” says Anthony Neary, managing director … Read more

North-east of England is best region in Great Britain for allotments, report finds | Allotments

The north-east of England is Great Britain’s allotment heartland, with Redcar and Cleveland and County Durham the two councils with the highest rate of allotment provision per person, an analysis has found. It also revealed that Scotland on average has just a quarter of the space per person that is available in England. Allotment provision … Read more

Got a new garden and don’t know where to start? Get the basics right first | Gardening advice

One of the questions I’m often asked when I speak at events usually comes from someone – perhaps half of a couple – who seems wide-eyed with optimism and overwhelm. “We’ve just moved into a new house and it has this garden,” they’ll begin. They don’t know what to do with it; where should they start? Invariably, I tell them to … Read more