Gardening Tips Your fortnightly gardening tips for indoors and outdoors

The correct selection of plants for an easy-care garden is all-important. Good design, labour-saving techniques and mechanical aids can all reduce work, of course, but the correct choice of easy-care plants can actually help the gardener to keep the garden neat and weed free. This is achieved not only by selecting easily grown plants that require the minimum of routine maintenance such as staking and pruning, but also by selecting those plants that can compete successfully with weeds, inhibiting their germination and development.
Often recommended, as the easiest plants to grow are hardy annuals. Seed can be sown directly into the soil, and the resulting plants need little aftercare. However, annuals are only temporary residents in a garden, germinating, flowering and dying in the same year. Keen gardeners often have ambitious bedding schemes for annuals, raising from seed and planting out in feature beds a large variety of annual species each year. As the flowering period of these plants is usually short, the early-flowering annuals need to be replaced with later-flowering types to maintain colour throughout a season. This is obviously a very labour-intensive method of gardening, requiring frequent disturbance of the soil, which can allow weeds to gain a foothold. Unless it is necessary to provide temporary colour quickly, planting schemes that involve the raising and planting out of numerous annuals are best left to the enthusiastic gardener.

As plants can take a very long time to recover-if at all- from a poor start in life, it is important to purchase the best quality stock possible. This may cost more initially but will save much wasted time and effort trying to grow poor stock. Whenever possible buy from a reputable nursery that specialises in container-grown plants so that you can inspect each plant before you buy it. Go with a list of plants you want to purchase, and, unless you know your plants well, stick to it. Do not buy on impulse. If a plant that is not on your list appeals to you, make a note of the name and check its suitability for your garden and planting scheme when you return home. If it proves to be suitable, you can buy it later.

APPLICATION FOR THE VARIATION OF A PREMISES LICENCE Sheringham Social Club, 2 - 4 Holway Road, Sheringham, Norfolk, NR26 8HN.

Are seeking a variation of licence to 24 hours, 7 days a week to allow flexible opening times throughout the year. In accordance with the new Government Legislation for the premises above.

Any objections should be made in writing within 28 days to the Licensing Section, North Norfolk District Council, Holt Road, Cromer, NR27 9EN.

Paul Todd, Club Secretary

I was shopping in the city earlier this month. I quite fancied a fitted white gypsy dresses as they seem to be all the rage at the moment. I went into a high street store and found exactly what I was looking for. I went into the fitting room to try it on, it looked great, but when I tried to take it off - I couldn't. I was stuck. The sales assistant wasn't able to help and in the end it had to be cut off me, I was mortified