Gillian Vine

Next year, the world's most famous flower show celebrates 100 years in the grounds of Chelsea's Royal Hospital, but, says Gillian Vine, the show is really much older.

Edible flowers make a pretty talking point at mealtimes, says Gillian Vine.

With a little bit of help, it is amazing the number and variety of succulents that will grow outside in Dunedin, if given the right spot and conditions. Our climate is not as extreme as we, or at least the rest of New Zealand, might think.

Small and productive . . . Gillian Vine suggests some fruit trees for smaller gardens.

Soft-fruit shrubs, plants and canes are suitable for gardens of all sizes. Gillian Vine reports.

When he is 16, an autistic boy, Merlin, is hit by a car and lies unconscious in hospital. His mother, Lucy, is devastated not only because her son may die but also because Merlin ran into the road after she had yelled at him.

Two parallel stories of separated parents and the issues surrounding custody of children are the backbone of Matilda is Missing by Australian Caroline Overington.

Saffron is always eager to help but things don't always go according to plan. Saffron: So Quite Excellent is the third in Victoria M. Azaro's series for girls aged about 5 to 8. Because her mother is tired out from coping with baby Star Anise, Saffron helps with little sister Sage and the housework.

"Gradually, for many reasons, fruit crops are making a comeback in the garden," says Andrew Steens in his introduction to Grow it Yourself: Fruit & Nuts.

Just because you devote your section to vegetables and fruit need not mean it is boring to behold, as Diana Anthony demonstrates in The Ornamental Edible Garden.

Old newspaper reports help Gillian Vine build a picture of a North Otago garden in its heyday.

Rhubarb is one of the easiest vegetables to grow, Gillian Vine says.

If you want something unique in your flower garden, Gillian Vine suggests breeding your own dahlias.

Colleen McCullough's latest tale, The Prodigal Son, featuring American cop Carmine Delmonico, comes into the welcome area where light fiction need not be "once over lightly".

Retelling the story of Cinderella is not new, not even setting it in the future (see the Kiwi story Nest of Lies, by Heather McQuillan, for example).

When Henry VIII became king of England in 1509, at the age of 17, he inherited from his father, Henry VII, full coffers and a stable throne.

Gillian Vine finds out what it's like showing and judging at the Ellerslie International Flower Show.

A New Plymouth garden with an impressive selection of natives catches the eye of Gillian Vine.

After Allie's brother disappeared, her once-superb school grades slumped and she fell into bad company.