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I do worry about the state of my allotment, however. Will everything be a shrivelled wreck when I return home to Cambridgeshire tonight? Or will one of my lovely allotment chums have taken pity on me and given everything a good drink? I really don't believe that veg need to be watered every night, but not watering for a fortnight when temperatures are hitting 30°C may be pushing my luck!

Assembling a gardening programme in a heatwave is not without its problems either. Things change so quickly from one week to the next, it's like waiting for a drama to unfold. Take our problem of the week, for example. A few days ago, our greengage was smothered in mealy plum aphid - a pest I was keen to include on next week's show. But over the weekend, gooseberry sawfly took their toll on our currants to the point where both bushes have been reduced to skeletons! All very dramatic and an event we simply couldn't ignore.

As you'll see, next week's programme has a bit of a good bug, bad bug feel to it. But that's August for you. Butterflies and bees galore, with the odd dragonfly thrown in for good measure. Carol, of course, was in her element and loved every minute. And like me, never misses an opportunity to revel in the glory of nature.