WEEKEND WORK

Cyclamen corms that have been resting can be started into growth again now in a greenhouse. Clean off all the old leaves, shake any loose soil off the corm and repot it in the smallest pot that it will fit into. Use John Innes No 1 compost or its equivalent and set the corm so that the top just shows above the compost. Spray the corm every day with tepid water. Do not bring the plant into the house until there are at least four to six flowers in bud.

Over the next month, take cuttings of tender fuchsias and geraniums. Choose strong, healthy shoots for geraniums and crop off the top four inches. Trim the cutting to a point immediately below a leaf joint, remove all mature leaves and any flower buds and pot them up in a mixture of peat and sand. Do not cover them.

Stem cuttings can be taken of hibiscus, hydrangea, kolkwitzia and perovskia (Russian sage). This last is a useful plant, like a tall shrubby catmint, which flowers from August to September.