GARDENING: Plan your weekend gardening with Brian Kidd

'¢Plant maincrop potatoes during a dry spell. Ensure the tubers are covered with at least five inches of soil. Scatter blood, fish and bone along the rows using 3oz per yard run and work this into the surface. Finish by leaving a ridge of soil over the rows of planted tubers. When earthing up, use sieved compost but to each barrowload of compost add 1lb of sulphate of potash. Mix well. This reduces slug damage effectively.

'¢Ground dug in autumn may now be smothered with chickweed and other annual weeds. Walk on a plank and spray the weeds with Weedol. This will kill them in a few days but must be done before the weeds flower. Do this on a sunny day for the quickest results and don't allow the drift to touch cultivated plants '“ especially the neighbours'!

'¢Antirrhinum and stocks already pricked out into seed trays can be put outside now as they are fairly hardy. Have fleece ready to cover them if nights are cold.

'¢Buy seeds of perennials. Most gardeners sow them in early May in seed trays in the greenhouse.

'¢Think about fixing an automatic ventilator in the roof light in the greenhouse. They can be really useful, especially when you're on holiday.

'¢Watch out for sudden hot spells. Plants in the greenhouse quickly scorch in hot sun. Have sheets of newspaper ready to cover them. This is very effective and free.

'¢Take the red bracts off the tips of poinsettias now and cut back each stem by one third. The cuts will exude a white liquid which is poisonous. Use toilet tissue to mop it up and wash hands afterwards. The plant can be potted into the next size pot into John Innes No2 compost. Water it the day before repotting.

'¢Canterbury bells are lovely and this is the time to sow the seeds for blooms next year.

'¢Remove dead flowers and seed heads on daffs and tulips.

'¢Spray roses with Roseclear 2 to prevent disease.

'¢Thank you for taking my advice, I hear you talking about me at garden centres all the time.