Graham's gardening week

Give

Lift and split clumps of rhubarb; plant in a big hole with plenty of organic matter and they'll produce masses of stems next year.

Move a few parsley plants from the garden into pots and keep them on a cool windowsill or in the conservatory for winter pickings.

Set mouse traps in the garage, in cold frames, in the greenhouse and anywhere seeds, fruit or veg are being stored for the winter. Humane traps are available from most garden centres.

Slugs can damage many plants in the greenhouse in winter, use traps or pellets.

If you have holly bushes in your garden and you'd like a few branches complete with berries for Christmas, cover them with netting to keep the birds off until you cut them.

Don't move Christmas cacti from their usual place in the run-up to Christmas; sometimes they react by dropping their flower buds.

Look out for clusters of woolly aphids on apple and crab apple trees, pyracanthas and cotoneasters. They're like grey greenfly covered in a white waxy coat. Paint them with methylated spirits or spray with Bug Clear.

Water indoor cyclamen (right) by repeatedly filling the saucer with water until the plant takes up no more, then throwing away the remainder.

Check for mouldy leaves on greenhouse and conservatory plants, pick them off at once before disease spreads. Open the vents whenever the weather allows.

Dig up some chives, pot them up and keep them in a cold greenhouse for some early snips.