Far away from the bottled and pickled varieties you find in the supermarket, beetroot is a supremely versatile vegetable. Taking centre stage in sweet treats, such as chocolate truffles and brownies,

Helping you get your best-ever fruit and veg

Not only does growing your own carrots produce sensational flavours that delight the palate, but it also opens up the possibility of an extraordinary range of colours. For this trial I grew 12 varieti

Lucy gets started on the most important tasks of the fortnight ahead lain

Fancy growing something a bit unusual? Then give chickpeas a try. They need a sheltered, sunny site with free-draining soil. Warm the ground with cloches or fleece before sowing. If you have heavy cla

As days grow longer, the urge to sow seeds is almost impossible to resist. But if you dream of overflowing beds, the most important thing to do now is plan the growing year to help you meet its sowing