Gardening: The temperature's crashed, so there's no excuse. Here are your jobs for the weekend | Brian Kidd

• Water early potatoes with Maxicrop Complete liquid fertiliser allowing three weeks before gently removing some of the soil from the ridging. You will see little potatoes. Pull off just a few here and there leaving the plant to grow on. If the soil is dry start watering as soon as the potatoes come into flower and you will increase the size of the crop.

• Stop ants climbing trees by putting a band of grease right around the trunk.

• Trim the grass edges of the lawn every time you mow.

• Each time you add a 4in layer of mowings to the compost bin add either 2oz of Sulphate of Ammonia or one part urine to seven parts water.

• Give tomatoes a drink of calcium nitrate to prevent blossom end rot.

• Dust a ring of ant powder around the stems of tomatoes stems to stop woodlice climbing the stems to eat the little fruits.

• Take the tops out of chrysanthemums growing as spray blooms.

• Sow another batch of maincrop peas in insert cells. If you cover these with fleece once they are planted outdoors you won't have maggots in the peas.

• Sow just a few lettuces such as Salad Bowl. You just cut the leaves off these and leave the plants.

• Did you sow runner beans. Why not? They look wonderful on a wigwam shape with 8ft high canes in the

flower border.

• Try some capillary matting so your plants will remain watered whie you are on holiday. Buy a piece the size of a tea towel, fill the sink with water ensuring the matting is well down in the sink and put pot plants on the drainer. It works and the plants are, never over-watered.