I sympathise with your slug problems. I have tried nematodes and the non-organic slug pellets for years, I don't know where they come from. Each year they return. I have nearly given up on Delphiniums and lupins (although they are all I desire) I have had to turn to Agapanthus for the tall blue flowers I crave. This year I have turned to growing veg and caught a tip which I am using this year. Coffee grindings. The slugs cannot move over them, so ensure you have a 4" or 10cm path of coffee grindings (from the cafetiere or filter) around your plants, this will slow them down a bit.

   If you have sown the seeds of Gypsophila elegans - the florist's favourite also known as Baby's Breath - then , yes it will flower this year. It is a tender annual and will last until the first frost. Protect it from frost now too. There are many other kinds of gypsophila - rockery plants, climbers, perennials - which all have this in common. The name means lover of chalk so that is the kind of soil they prefer. Check which gypsophila you have because it may be one you can keep year on year.

   Hi Linda, I ahve just planted some gypsophila in a pot. Will it bloom this summer? Dave

   Hi Linda, I have just planted some gypsophila in a pot. Will it bloom this summer? Dave