I wonder if we should have a little talk about excess. Being a novice, I find it impossible to gauge how many of my seeds will work or not – and have little idea in advance of the size of the subsequent plant. I also panic and resow if I cannot see any seedlings within a couple of weeks.

As a result I now have 15 chilli bushes under way, 13 aubergine plants which I imagine are going to be quite big – we have never grown them before – and no fewer than an amazing 53 basil seedlings. That’s a hell of a lot of pasta sauce. I suspect the more advanced gardener is better than I am at throwing away a weak seedling. I cannot do it, so pleased (and astonished) am I still to have grown anything at all, that I throw every one into the pots.

Fortunately, outside the greenhouse we are going to great lengths to avoid over-sowing, and are planting bit by bit by bit in the hope that we do not get the sudden glut of beans or peas which we had last year. The over-winter broad beans are already out and in my tummy, very delicious too, a month earlier than last year – another message about global warming, this time from a small green bean. They are also tipping over in the wind and under the weight of the pods, so for the next lot that are coming through now, I have constructed a cat’s cradle of string and strong sticks in the hope that it will give them some support.

That was a tip from Sarah Wain, our expert adviser. She visited again at the end of April and we got a sort of C plus.Oddly, everything I think is going bloomingly, like the pea and tomato plants she criticises (“leaning”), while the things that worry me (blackfly on the broad beans) she dismisses with a “can’t be perfect”.

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Well, nothing in the garden is ever perfect, but I’m clinging like a runner bean to the belief that it’s usually good enough. Out of chaos I can see order developing – even if I can’t see a free weekend in sight. Does anyone else get a bit resentful of that at this time of year? I’d love to know whether more experienced gardeners than I bother to earth up their potatoes.

I know that it is back-breaking and time-consuming, but is it really necessary? Post your views.

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