do it!

Jobs for the week EASY 2 Check for scarlet lily beetles that nibble holes in leaves, flowers and seedpods of fritillaries and lilies. They often hide in foliage, disguised by black excrement. Move young plants from greenhouses and window sills into cold frames to get them gradually used to cooler outside conditions before planting out.

Finish planting herbaceous perennials for summer displays, watering them in with a liquid feed.

EFFORT 2 Plant pond plants. Using nylon string, thread both sides of a basket containing a deep-water aquatic, such as water lilies, and with the help of a friend use it to lower the basket into place in the middle of the pond.

Keep an eye out for cabbage white caterpillars. Rub eggs off leaves and pick caterpillars off by hand, then cover the crop with fine netting to stop butterflies laying eggs.

Trim and shape topiary with secateurs or topiary shears.

DIY it Bugbears Now is the time to start routinely checking garden plants for bugs so that you can nip any problems in the bud before they take hold. Small colonies of greenfly can be washed off with soapy water but to catch slugs, snails, vine weevils and earwigs you will need to go on a bug hunt after dark or set traps, such as upturned grapefruit shells, to create dark hiding places where you can catch them resting during the day.

Damaged leaves and shoots are open to infection and should be taken off plants to prevent diseases getting a foothold. Plants are more susceptible to fungal attack in humid and damp conditions, so at the first signs of infection, spray with a fungicide. Rake up and destroy fallen leaves.

Design it Show stopper The curtain goes up on Chelsea Flower Show this week and many of the 150,000 visitors and millions of TV viewers will be keen to see how gardeners can be more environmentally friendly without forfeiting good looks and style.

Town dwellers in particular will not be disappointed. There is a host of exhibitors concentrating on how we can green our towns and cities, grow our own food and help wildlife.

TV gardener Chris Beardshaw will also be showing how well-designed pockets of green in urban areas can improve mental and physical health and reduce anti-social behaviour, which just confirms what we already know - that gardening is good for body and soul.

If you've transformed your garden into a heavenly haven, let me know! Send before and after pics and how you did it to me at the address opposite.

Good idea RAKE moss from your lawn and use it to line hanging baskets. - Rita Baraker, Basingstoke, Hampshire