Radio times

As a gardening journalist working in a broad portfolio of mediums, one of my favourites is radio. I appear regularly on BBC Essex and am the gardening correspondent for BBC Radio Cambridgeshire. Today was one of my regular slots on the latter. Dougan Does Gardening from 11am to 1pm offers a phone-in advice service, and it's always interesting to hear what people are having problems with and helping them out wherever possible. It's also a good way of learning and finding out if there are any new trends developing.

To listen to the programme visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/mainframe.shtml?http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/cam.shtml

So what did today have on offer? Mainly pest and disease problems and mostly focussed around the unusual weather patterns of this year. Potato and tomato blight were high on the list (following my own experience at home), onion blight (although onions don't get 'blight' and this was more likely to be neck rot or mildew), and numerous leaf spots and other fungal and bacterial diseases on hydrangea, petunia, cherry and magnolia to name a few. Other questions revolved around pruning bottle brush plants, using wood chips, growing figs, passion fruit and lemons and moving a Japanese maple. These suggested that we’re all tending to grow more ‘exotic’ plants – maybe one of the few good things about global warming!

It's interesting to find out what's bothering people - but more interesting to realise just how bothered and worked up they can get about things. I think they also gain reassurance knowing that there are lots of other people out there with the same problem. But if I can be a reassuring shoulder to cry on - although usually I'm the bringer of doom and bad news - then so be it.

My next radio appearance is on BBC Essex on Down to Earth on August 11. If you don't live in Essex or can't tune in and have a question, then you can always e-mail me in the usual way.

Have a great gardening week - or at least try to!