competitions

The “expansion of European club competitions” has led to there being just one game on 26 December in the English top flight, says the Premier League.

Boxing Day fixtures have been a long-standing tradition in English football but this year the only Premier League game will be Manchester United’s home match with Newcastle United (20:00 GMT).

While confirming the schedule for this year’s festive fixtures, the league’s communications manager George Haberman said: “The Premier League would like to acknowledge the circumstances that have led to a reduced number of matches on Boxing Day this season – impacting an important tradition in English football.

“There are now several challenges to Premier League fixture scheduling rooted in the expansion of European club competitions – which led to a revision of our domestic calendar ahead of last season, including changes to the FA Cup.

“This ultimately left the Premier League as a 33-weekend competition – fewer than previous seasons, despite being a 380-match competition since 1995.”

More to follow.

A LUCKY viewer of a brand new ITV game show has walked away with an eye-watering £1million.

Sienna McSwiggan, 20, secured the top prize last night on Win Win with People’s Postcode Lottery on Saturday night.

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The hotel manager from The Black Country took home the £1million cash prize, as well as two cars, two luxury holidays, a trip to Australia to see The Ashes and Take That tickets.

After answering the winning question correctly, Sienna questioned if it was real and said the money would be life-changing for herself and family.

She said: “I don’t even know what to say. I am in shock.

“I’ve literally got a penny in my account.

“I’m over the moon. It feel like a dream and someone’s gonna wake me up any minute.”

Hosted by Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins, the quiz show sees contestants battling it out in the studio.

At home viewers can also get involved and play for prizes.

However, the show’s format also allows these viewers to become contestants in the studio.

Once they have bagged a prize, players have to face the ultimate decision.

They must choose between keeping their original prize or risk it all and trade it in to join Millionaire’s row.

Sienna took the gamble and traded a trip to the Maldives for a chance to win big.

The risk saw her take home one of the UK’s biggest telly prizes.

Last month, The Sun reported that another contestant took home a huge £20,000 jackpot.

After answering the final question correctly, Shayanne took home the winning prize.

Previously discussing the format, Mel Giedroyc said: “This quiz is so extra!

“Imagine winning something like a car just by playing along with a gameshow you’re watching on a Saturday night in your pyjamas?

“I can’t wait!”

Sue Perkins added: “If I wasn’t hosting this, I’d be playing it at home; sat in my leopard print onesie, cuddling the dog whilst trying to figure out The Nation’s favourite chocolate bar. Bring it on!”

Speaking to The Mirror ahead of yesterday’s finale, Sue added:  “Saturday’s show really is going to be a night like no other. 

“The thrilling thing, of course, is that all of this is going to be won by one person, and that person might even be a viewer turned contestant, who simply signed up, joined in from their sofa and got the surprise of their life.”

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IT was the Autumn equinox on Monday – which means the days are about to get a lot shorter.

Before you know it, it will be dark when you get home from work and when you get up in the morning.

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And although that means less gardening time – there’s still loads you can get in the ground or your greenhouse.

In fact, Autumn is a great time to get planting – simply because the soil is still warm but the weather is cooler – which means roots can establish well before Winter.

Whether it’s for produce or colour before Christmas – or flowers after – I’ve put together a guide on what can go in the ground now.

FLOWERS

You can always tell from what’s on sale in your local garden centre or supermarket as to what will bring you colour in the run up before Christmas.

But staples like container grown Geums, Cyclamen, Astor, Japanese Anenome, and Chrysanthemums can be bought in flower and planted now.

Plus racks of bedding plants like pansies, viola and primroses are filling supermarket shelves.

I managed to find three packs of eight viola plugs from Asda for just a fiver last weekend – which means each of the 24 plugs are only 20p.

Plus the gorgeous colour combinations will fill your garden with rainbows of colour.

And a lot of the garden centres are offering Winter Bedding packs – which takes the decision of what to buy out of your hands – and provides you with a lovely rainbow of colours for your outside space.=

Seeds-wise – you can plant sweetpea, poppies, calendula, cornflower, nemesia, forget-me-nots, and lavender under cover.

BULBS

Daffodils, crocus, alliums and grape hyacinth bulbs are good to go in September and October – as well as the more unusual large Fritalliaries  and Camassia – which look really like bluebells.

But hold fire until November until you plant your tulip bulbs – they love the colder weather.

If you put them in too early, you’ll risk the change of Tulip Fire, which is a fungal disease that causes distorted leaves and spots – that look like scorch marks – on the tulips themselves.

A lot of online garden centres have big bulb sales on at the moment, so it’s worth shopping around.

Suttons Seeds are offering Sun Gardening readers an exclusive link to get 80 per cent off their bulb sales right now.

Access it now at www.suttons.co.uk/sunoffer

VEGETABLES AND FRUIT

Butterhead and Lamb’s lettuce actually like the colder weather – so under a cloche or cold frame, or in a greenhouse – sow the seeds thinly, about 1.5cm deep. Sow every 2-3 weeks for a continuous supply.

Overwintering cauliflower seeds like ‘All The Year Round’ and ‘Autumn Giant’ can be planted now – under protection.

Plus onion seeds, winter greens, garlic, pak choi, spinach and kale.

There’s a lot of fruit you can grow in pots – including cherries, raspberries, strawberries and blueberries.

Then wait until November for bare root season

Also in Veronica’s Column this week…

Gardening news, top tips, Plant of the Week plus a chance to win a £200 Gardening Express voucher.

Fore more gardening content and competitions follow me @biros_and_bloom

NEWS! Did you know that 22 billion carrot seeds are sown each year in the UK, and we eat our way through 700,000 tonnes of carrots annually?
This works out to be around 100 per person, and laid out end to end they would stretch 1.4 million miles – two and a half trips to the moon.  
And as British growers provide 97 per cent of the carrots consumers buy in the UK, there is almost no need to buy imported carrots.
They’re also worth £290m to the UK Economy yet are one of the cheapest vegetables – with loads of nutritional benefits.  
The incredible stats have been released in time for British Carrot Day on Friday – which celebrates the UK carrot growing and encourages people to buy, get creative, eat, and cook with carrots.
For more information visit www.britishcarrots.co.uk 

NEWS! A whopping leaf four metres long has been grown at the Eden Project, Cornwall. Lodoicea maldivica, more commonly known as coco de mer, is native to the islands of the Seychelles and is famous for producing the world’s largest and heaviest seed.
The mature leaf has taken around ten years to develop to this stage. And over the next decade, it could reach a massive eight to ten metres. A coco de mer can live for up to 800 years, reaching up to 112 feet tall.

TOP TIP! September is the start of baby hedgehog (hoglet) season, and you may find that they need your help.
Autumn Juvenile hedgehogs are old enough to be away from their mums, but often too small to hibernate successfully.
Guidance from the British Hedgehog Preservation Society  says that “if the hedgehog is a regular visitor to your garden, is only seen at night, appears active and you are prepared to feed it every night then it can be left in the wild.
But  if the hedgehog goes off its food, wobbles and staggers or starts coming out in the day, then it needs extra help as soon as possible.
The best way to ensure wild hedgehogs are well-fed is to create organic wild spaces, leafy corners and log piles where they can forage for natural foods, like grubs and insects.
To supplement their diet in the wild, you can offer hedgehogs a good quality meaty hedgehog food, meaty cat or dog food or dry biscuits for cats.

NEWS! If you fancy turning your hand to growing houseplants, Unwins have launched a brand new Houseplant Seed Collection, a curated range of eight varieties that have been specially selected and bred to flourish in UK and Irish homes.
Including Asparagus Ferns, Sempervivum, Bird of Paradise and Dichondra Silver Surfer, the packs are available now in your local garden centre.
Natasha Lane, Head of Seed, for Unwins, commented: “We’re very excited to be launching a collection of houseplant seeds for the first time. It now means that it’s easier than ever to create your very own indoor jungle. Whether you’re looking to enhance wellbeing, purify the air, or simply add style to your space, our houseplant seeds are ready to grow with you.”

WIN! One lucky reader can win a £200 Gardening Express voucher to spend online. To enter, visit www.thesun.co.uk/EXPRESSVOUCHER or write to Sun Gardening Express competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. October 11, 2025. T&Cs apply

PLANT OF THE WEEK! Japanese Anemone. Blooming now, they’re graceful and tall with long stalks and single or double flowers – great for brightening up shady corners, but prefer a bit of sun. Spread by rhizomes.

JOB OF THE WEEK! If you’ve got a pond it’s time to get it ready for winter – net it before leaves start to fall and trim back any overgrown pond plants. Put a tennis ball in to help prevent freezing.

THERE’S been a lot of talk about bedding plants recently.

Rebranded as ‘Seasonal Interest’ they’ve annoyed some folk in the gardening industry because of environmental concerns.

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You’ll know them better as those lovely flowers in garden centres and supermarkets that bring an instant burst of colour to your outside space – like petunias, marigolds, begonias, nemesia, cosmos and lobelia.

Often you’ll buy them in plugs to plant straight into the soil before the frost sets in.

Naysayers reckon that because they’re not perennial, need a lot of watering and are bred in greenhouses – which use lots of energy – they’re bad for the environment.

But there’s one man in particular who couldn’t have loved them more – holding firm in the face of all the negative comments.

Sun Gardening Editor Peter Seabrook took on Floral Fantasia at RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex back in 2019 and right up until his death was championing bedding plants.

I was lucky enough to visit recently and was overwhelmed with the astonishing array of beautiful planting – showcasing swathes of stunning colours and species – which are crucially all affordable.

“‘We sell smiles’ is what Peter would have said,” Mike Smith, chair of the Floral Fantasia Working Group told me.

“His vision was to be ‘the centre of excellence for seasonal plants’ and although we’re not quite there yet – we’re definitely on our way.

“When I first came to Hyde Hall I was in awe of the gardens there, but appreciate they’re quite overwhelming to try and recreate in the average garden that is less than 15 metres square.

“We want to inspire people to have a go, show them something achievable – and this is where the Seasonal Interest comes in.

“They’re not grown in peat any more, they bring happiness to the consumer and they’re manageable.

“But also, it’s worth recognising that ornamental growers add over £1bn to the economy.

“Alan Titchmarsh agreed with Peter, and said after he died: ‘We all need to take up the baton from him to keep fighting our corner and explain what this means and how important horticulture is and it’s value to the British economy.’

“And that’s what we’re trying to do. We’re showing visitors to Hyde Hall the latest UK plants – and we’re celebrating Fleuroselect’s Year of the Begonia with over 150 varieties being trialled in beds and containers – they’re a stunning splash of colour.

“The public get to see all manner of cultivars that they’ve never seen before and everyone comes out smiling.”

Peter’s son Roger Seabrook told Sun Gardening: “‘Floral Fantasia at RHS Hyde Hall meant so much to Dad – he saw the garden as a way to show what could be achieved with seasonal planting and to inspire people to get growing, however small their space.

“He put a huge amount of energy into championing Floral Fantasia and rolled his sleeves up to spend long hours working in the garden himself.

“For this reason it’s a special place for our family and it’s just fantastic to see it looking so vibrant and colourful.

“I’m sure that Dad would have been delighted to see the progress made, a testament to all the hard work of those involved over the years.’

Tim Kerley, of Kerley Plants, Cambridge, which provides blooms for Floral Fantasia added: “They’re bright, cheery flowers that will put a smile on your face all summer long! Modern varieties are low maintenance and thrive in our varied climate.

“They’re great for your mind and pollinators -all for the price of a cup of coffee.”

Annual chrysanthemum’s are also considered bedding plants. And they’re a fantastic way of bringing colour to your garden in Autumn when everything is dying back a bit.

Lidl has one on sale for £1.99 from next Saturday and it’s going to be my cheap secret weapon to bring colour to my outside space.

Also in Veronica’s Column this week

News, top tips, plant of the week and a firepit competition

For more top tips and gardening content follow me @biros_and_bloom

NEWS! THE Cuprinol Shed of the Year results are in – and the winner is engineer Mike Robinson from South East London with his spectacular shed, ‘The Tiny Workshop.
Designed to slot neatly into a garden with limited room, it wowed judges with its imaginative use of space. With off-the-shelf sheds too big for his plot, Mike built the shed using two sets of heavy-duty steel shelving, bolted together and clad with wood’
Two doors flap open at the bottom and top to provide flooring and handy rain protection, with a smart overhanging green roof to store garden tools and welcome nature to the garden.
Mike wins this year’s top prize of an overnight nature getaway, £1,000 cash and £250 of Cuprinol product.

TOP TIP! Time to start thinking about feeding the birds in your garden a little bit more. And Alex Gill, founder of Awesome Wildlife Company, has some unusual advice.
“By providing food and shelter now, we can give birds, hedgehogs, and insects the best possible chance of thriving through the winter, and in turn, we get to enjoy a garden full of life.
“Both dried and fresh fruit works. Apples and pears are very popular with garden birds. If you do choose to put any spare fruit that you might have out, make sure it’s fresh as mouldy fruit isn’t good for birds.
“Dried fruits, like Raisins, are also well loved by some bird’s species. Just remember to be careful and avoid if you have a dog, as raisins are toxic to dogs.
He added: “During the colder months, birds benefit from high-energy foods, such as sunflower seeds, peanuts, mealworms, and suet. These kinds of foods help them build up their fat reserves so that they can survive the colder months.”  

NEWS! THE CANNA UK National Giant Vegetables Championship will be taking place at the Malvern Autumn Show next weekend. It showcases some unbelievably large vegetables – which often break Guinness World records. Taking place at the Three Counties Showground, Malvern, you’ll also get the chance to see talks by Monty Don, Adam Frost, August Bernstein, and RHS Ambassador Manoj Malde. And there will be fabulous flowers, plants, bulbs, seeds, tools and equipment to marvel at.

NEWS! BBC TV presenter, keen gardener and National Garden Scheme Ambassador, Fiona Bruce will host a very special National Garden Scheme Ask the Experts event at the Royal Geographical Society, London on Tuesday 2nd December at 7pm. Answering a range of pre-submitted audience questions and covering all aspects of gardens and gardening will be a panel including Arit Anderson, Danny Clarke, Rachel de Thame, Joe Swift.

NEWS! There’s a beautiful new book called The Essential Guide to Bulbs, by Jenny Rose Carey, coming out next month. Published on October 16th by Timber Press, its a fabulous guide to growing bulbs all year round in gardens and containers. The pictures are gorgeous and it’s really informative too, it would make a lovely present for the Gardener in your life.

WIN! As the evenings draw in – warm up with an eco-friendly, low carbon Eco Fuego fire pit worth £179.99 and a wax refill worth £26.99. To enter visit www.thesun.co.uk/ECOFIREPIT or write to Sun Eco Firepit competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. October 4, 2025. T&Cs apply

PLANT OF THE WEEK! “Verbena Officinalis Bampton” Still flowering now – it’s an unusual looking bushy drought-resistant perennial with small purple flowers on the end of wiry branches. Prefers full sun, south facing borders.

TOP TIP! Raise your pots now to prevent waterlogging – you don’t have to pay for proper feet – you can use bottle caps, coasters, tiles, bricks, or even logs cut to size. There just needs to be drainage space under the pot.

DID you know there are rainforests in Britain? Nope – me neither.

But you may well have visited one without realising if you’ve holidayed in Cornwall, Wales or along the Atlantic Coastline.

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Especially if you remember walking through green woodland packed with ferns, moss and lichen – with a really memorable earthy, damp scent.

They once covered more than 20 per cent of the UK – but history devoured them – and now there’s less than one per cent.

So the Wildlife Trust, sponsored by Aviva, has just launched an epic 100-year restoration project to bring them back.

The temperate rainforest restoration programme will restore approximately 1,755 hectares of temperate rainforest across the British Isles. 

Some of the new sites created through this programme include Bowden Pillars in Devon, Bryn Ifan in North Wales, Creg y Cowin and Glion Darragh on the Isle of Man, Trellwyn Fach in Pembrokeshire, and – most recently – Skiddaw in Cumbria.

Garden Designer Zoe Claymore, won a silver gilt medal at RHS Chelsea for her British Rainforest Garden.

She told me: “I didn’t know it at the time – but I played in a British rainforest as a child. The end of my grandparents garden in Devon went into Lidford Gorge which is one of the last existing rainforests.

“In the UK they’re found in the Goldilocks zone – not too hot, not too cold – and by rivers, gullies and gorges, because you also need the moisture from the river creating that ecosystem.”

But there are ways of recreating one in your own garden, she said.

“Even if  you don’t live in an area suited to creating a rainforest there’s other plants that will create the same vibes.

“Create shade with Hazels – they’re a great small tree which gives a real native-feel and perfect for small gardens. Or include hollies, birch or willows.

“Create a water feature – from a little stream with a few rocks or simply as an old-school rock water bowl – to  create that sense of humidity.

“But even if you just did a pond in a pot surrounded by some fun little logs, that will create habitat, that will bring wildlife, and it will create that kind of feeling of rainforest-y wetness.”

It’s easy to make a home made pond – using old washing up bowls. Tesco’s are currently selling one for just £2.75.

First choose a spot that’s sunny but not in direct sunlight all day – otherwise the water will evaporate.

Then all you have to do is put some logs around it, and a few stones, so wildlife can climb in and out easily – almost like a ramp.

Ideally fill it with rain water rather than tap.

And then put in about three water plants – like mini water lillies or water forget-me-not and sit back waiting for the wildlife.

Zoe added: “Then use British classic woodland plants and really focus on ferns – the unsung beautiful heroes of shade gardening – as well as bluebells, foxgloves, primulars, ivy, bananas and – if you’ve got a wet area – moss – which is the jewel in the crown – so your garden will be green all year round.”

For a ‘how to’ guide adapted to all UK gardens – as well as a rainforest-inspired pot combination  – head to www.zoeclaymore.com – and a share of the proceeds will go the Wildlife Trust.

Also in Veronica’s Column this week…

Gardening tips, news, plant of the week and a competition to win a garden border worth £195

PLANT OF THE WEEK! Dierama Wind Nymph Pink – pictured above – clump forming perennial with slender arching stems with soft pink blooms and evergreen foliage. Bees love it. Plant in direct sunlight, likes well drained soil but might need protection in Winter.

NEWS! A dad’s 60-year-old lawnmower has taken its place in gardening history as the UK’s oldest Flymo – after he read a plea in Sun Gardening. 

Pete Goddard’s monumental mower was inducted into the British Lawnmower Museum in Southport, Merseyside, last week after Flymo sent out a request for old mowers. 

The rare blue Flymo was unveiled last month – taking its place in the museum alongside King Charles, Brian May, and Nicholas Parsons’ former mowers.

It came after a nationwide search for the UK’s oldest Flymo to celebrate 60 years since the iconic hover mower was invented.

The 79-year-old retired Highway Maintenance Operative’s Flymo was originally bought in the 1960s by his father-in-law and lovingly maintained across three generations – and still works today.

NEWS! Great Comp Gardens will show off some salvias not released to the general public before – at it’s  annual Summer Show next weekend. 

The seven acre garden in Platt, near Sevenoaks will be at it’s best – with the hot and cool border in bloom, salvias bringing swathes of colour to the perennial borders and the Italian Garden in full flower in time for their annual two-day flagship event. 

The weekend event features a group of talented artists, craftspeople, award-winning nurseries and garden ornamental suppliers plus live jazz bands on the lawn.

Curator William Dyson says: “We can’t wait to share the garden with our Summer Show visitors – it looks particularly splendid in August with the salvias in full flow.

“We’ve also introduced lots of new and interesting plants to the garden this year including a collection of new world salvias that we’ve inherited from Lindsay Pink (a collector in Portsmouth) that people won’t have seen before. 

“We urge people to come along and see our revamped planting schemes which help to showcase new salvias that we have been keeping under wraps until now. There are salvias that I’ve only seen once before and can’t wait to show people. We are mixing in drifts of South American annuals like Cosmos for interest and colour and Tagetes erecta (Mexican marigolds) plus lots of varieties of dahlias.”

For more info visit www.greatcompgarden.co.uk

WIN! Garden on a Roll – which provide ready-made garden border paper templates, and the plants to put them in – are offering three £195 borders at 3m x 60cm of any style – including the  ‘Wildlife border’ for bees and butterflies. To enter visit www.thesun.co.uk/GardenBorders, or write to Garden on a Roll competition,  PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. August 16, 2025. T&Cs apply

JOB OF THE WEEK! Stake your dahlias, trim your lavenders, take fuchsia cuttings, prune climbing and rambling roses, add tomato food to corn and peppers.

For more gardening content follow me @biros_and_bloom

LA28 released the first look at the 2028 Olympic competition schedule on Monday, exactly three years before the Games open on July 14, 2028. The slate is highlighted by a break in tradition to accommodate the organizing committee’s unique, dual-venue opening ceremony plan.

Instead of beginning the schedule with swimming, as has been customary in recent Games, track and field will instead take place during the first week of competition from July 15 to 24 at the Coliseum. Swimming will follow from July 22 to 30 at SoFi Stadium, where an indoor pool will be built after the opening ceremony.

The opening ceremony, now officially scheduled for 5 p.m. PDT on July 14, 2028, will be shared between the Coliseum and SoFi Stadium. Swimming will deliver the final competition of the 2028 Olympics as the last medal events are set to begin at 3 p.m. on July 30, 2028. Three hours later, the Olympic Games will conclude with the closing ceremony at 6 p.m. at the Coliseum.

Several sports will begin qualifying competitions before the opening ceremony, including cricket. The sport, which is returning to the Games for the first time since 1900, will be played at the Fairgrounds in Pomona and begin competition on July 12, along with soccer, handball, water polo, basketball, rugby and field hockey.

Making its Olympic debut, flag football will take place during the first week of competition from July 15 to 22 at BMO Stadium. The early competition could help reduce potential overlap with NFL training camps. Active NFL players are allowed to try out for Olympic national teams, but training camps typically begin in late July.

The sport will get a premier showcase opportunity in its Olympic debut as all flag football competitions are scheduled for afternoon and evening time slots. The men’s medal games are from from 6-8:30 p.m. on July 21, 2028 with the women’s finals beginning at 1 p.m. on July 22.

An artist’s rendering of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics swimming venue at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

(LA28)

Marquee events swimming, track and field, and artistic gymnastics (July 15-20, July 22-25) will dominate the prime-time windows in the United States as the Summer Games return to American soil for the first time since 1996.

U.S. viewership of the Olympics waned from 2018 to 2022 as three consecutive Games in Asian countries made for complicated time zone changes. Viewers in the Pacific Time Zone were 16 hours behind live coverage from Tokyo in 2021, when the pandemic-delayed Games averaged a record-low Olympic viewership for NBC. But numbers skyrocketed at the Paris Games, where evening sessions in Europe made for lunchtime viewing stateside, building interest just in time for L.A. to take the torch.

“We are energized by today’s milestones,” LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover said in a statement Monday that also celebrated 1 million enrollments with the youth sports program PlayLA, “and remain focused on the work ahead as the Road to 2028 continues.”

A full list of times for specific events are expected to be released later this year.

LA28 announced its eighth sponsorship deal of the year last week, inking Uber and Uber Eats as the official rideshare and on-demand delivery partners, respectively. The private organizing group plans to release information for volunteer opportunities this year, and registration for the ticket lottery should follow in early 2026.

WE may well be seeing lower slug and snail numbers this summer thanks to colder weather in winter and the recent dry spells.

But mother nature never makes it easy for us. Instead – of course – there’s a new pest in town.

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Aphid levels have rocketed this year – and the RHS reckons it’s top of the list of gardening queries to their hotline.

There’s over 500 different species found in the UK – and can be red, yellow, black, green, brown or pink.

They feed by sucking sap from plants – and can cause severe damage – including distorted growth, sooty mould and plant viruses – and sometimes plant death.

Chelsea award winning gardener Adam Woolcott – and Webb ambassador – gave Sun Gardening some top tips on how to tackle the most common early summer pests.

APHIDS

Physically remove the aphids from the stems and leaves.
Use natural insecticidal soaps.
Blast off with water jets.
Encourage predators such as ladybirds, lacewings, and hoverflies

VINE WEEVIL

Both the adult vine weevil beetles and their larvae cause damage.
Adults — all female — chew distinctive ‘U-shaped’ notches in leaves, particularly on evergreen shrubs like rhododendrons, escallonias, and viburnums.
Underground: larvae feed on plant roots and can kill container plants like Heucheras.
Remove adults at night when they’re most active
Break the life cycle with biological controls such as nematodes (apply in spring and autumn when grubs are active) Chemical treatments are a last resort, but offer longer-term control

LILY BEETLE

The bright red beetles and their larvae are both covered in their excrement. They can strip a plant in days, affecting flowering and bulb health.

Remove beetles by hand where practical
Encourage wildlife into the garden. Birds and ground beetles will eat the larvae
Grow a resistant variety.
Tolerate some damage if you can — total eradication isn’t always necessary.

CATERPILLARS

Especially troublesome in veg patches. Cabbage white butterfly caterpillars love brassicas, while box tree caterpillars are spreading rapidly across the UK, stripping foliage as they go.

Remove the caterpillars by hand if you can and destroy any badly affected plants (if practical) to stop the infestation from spreading.
Use biological sprays like nematodes.
In some cases, hot water and a mild detergent can help. Ecover is on sale at Dunelm for £2.45.
As a last resort, chemical controls can be effective

Also in Veronica’s Column this week…

Top tips, Gardening news, and a competition to win a £250 lawnmower

NEWS KING Charles made a surprise visit to Windsor Flower Show last Saturday. Celebrities including Alex Jones and Kirsty Gallacher were at the one-day show – which had wonderful village fair vibes, vegetable and cake competitions and fantastic floral displays.

TOP TIP JUNE is actually a good time to take Hydrangea cuttings – and get your own plants for free. They’ll have produced some soft green growth – which is what you want. Choose healthy, non flowering shoots that are 10-15cm long and cut just below the node (the leaf joint). Don’t collect cuttings from plants with leaves that are turning brown. And try to collect in the morning if you can.
Remove the lower leaves – leaving just one or two at the top.
Then dip the end in rooting powder or gel – then pop it straight in a pot. You could splash out on seeding and cutting compost – but multi purpose will do – just add a bit of grit or perlite. Then keep them out of direct sunlight and keep moist. They should have rooted within about a month.

NEWS A RARE ‘sheep-eating’ South American plant has flowered in an English primary school for the first time. The Puya Chilensis, with its iconic spike pattern, is normally found in the Andes in Chile. But after it was planted 10 years ago by school horticulturalist Louise Moreton, it has sent out a 10ft spike at Wicor Primary School in Portchester, Hants. It’s called a Sheep Catcher as it would normally entangle wildlife, hold onto it – and then when the animal died – would take the nutrients. Ms Moreton said it was exciting but a worrying sign of global warming.

WIN! Keep your lawn looking its best this summer by winning a Webb Classic Self Propelled Petrol Lawn Mower worth £249.99. To enter visit www.thesun.co.uk/WEBBCOMP or write to Sun Webb competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. July 5, 2025. T&Cs apply.

TOP TIP IF you want to get more flowers from your sedums (now called Hylotelephiums) and prevent them from collapsing – pinch them out around now. Pinch off around four sets of leaves down – which will make them bushier.

JOB OF THE WEEK Weeds thrive this month – keep on top of them by hoeing. Tie in sweet peas, and give your plants a good feed – liquid seaweed feed is great – and Tomorite works with nearly everything. Give agapanthus a high-potash feed every couple of weeks.

For more top tips and gardening news, follow me @biros_and_bloom

DO you know someone who should be crowned Britain’s best dad?

To celebrate Father’s Day on June 15, we are launching a search for the bravest, kindest or most devoted dad out there.

Perhaps you know a real-life superhero who is always helping others, or maybe a superstar who has raised a fortune for charity.

The one lucky winner will be showered with nearly £7,000 worth of fantastic prizes, including four tickets worth £1,000 in total to the star-studded Butlin’s Big Weekender music festival this summer, where the headline acts include Chesney Hawkes, Blue and Billy Ocean.

Safari tent

On top of that, Britain’s top pop will be spoiled rotten with a £500 relaxing trip to Celtic Manor hotel in Newport — with dinner, bed and breakfast for two and a round of golf all thrown in for good measure.

We are also giving away a £700 stay in a luxury safari Tent at Lovat Parks in Cornwall or the New Forest.

Also up for grabs are four tickets to the spooktacular Shocktober Fest, Europe’s largest Scream Park held in Sussex this Halloween — worth £150 each.

And there is a family set of four Micro Scooters to be won, worth £1,000, along with a £1,200 home technology upgrade from Netgear, £400 of fabulous Rock Face men’s grooming products, a £149.99 top-of-the-range Instant Pot Grind and Brew coffee machine, family-sized multi-cooker worth £250, a brand new Char-Broil gas barbecue worth £665 and the Vax SpotWash Home pet and car cleaning kit, worth £220.

To win the lot, tell us why your dad, or someone you love just like a father, deserves all these prizes!

How to enter

Email s[email protected] with “Dad Idol” in the subject line telling us why you believe he is a super dad.

Include your name, address and contact number together with a photo.

Or fill in the form at thesun.co.uk/dad-idol-competition.

The nominated dad must be based in the UK or Ireland.

Competition closes at 6pm on Friday June 6. T&Cs apply.