Oh my word, or 'one' word. ‘Wiltio’. Not just me but a lot of garden plants too. And whilst roses have been bloomin’ stunning, the blooms are not lasting very long at all. Try to dead head where you can, as this will save them putting energy into trying to keep their dead blooms going. You may well get a second flush, especially if we do have some rain soon.

Whilst my own ‘keep-cool’ methods are a bit dubious (and feral) and include putting my head under a garden tap, jumping in a stream and/or soaking my hat (and vest) in cold water regularly, I have also ‘dug out’ my cooling neck wraps, which contained a sort of ‘swell gel’ - a gel that expanded when wet and which kept you cool for a couple of hours at a time, until you re-wet them. They are quite effective and not as bulky as the neck fans which seem to be the latest ‘must have’.

My brother puts a 2 litre bottle of water in the freezer every night to take to work the next day. It’s still partly frozen in the afternoon and seems one of the best ways to ensure a cool drink in some of the remote places we work.

My Tilley hat doesn’t mind being put under a tap or dunked in a stream but whilst on their website I noticed they also do a Cooling Insert for some of their hats. The cooling material apparently ‘absorbs and slowly releases water through evaporation, supercharging the body’s natural cooling process.’

Having been plagued by horse flies last week, I also noticed that Tilley do a Bug Head Net that is compatible with some of their hats – particularly the Airflo styles. www.uk.tilley.com

It sits around the crown of your hat, draping over the face, a bit like a beekeepers hat and veil, to keep you protected from bugs and midgies. It’s no secret that I love a hat. I have been quite enamoured by their website and think I’ll be upgrading my Hat Portfolio. You know what they say, “If you want to get ahead, get a hat’ – and even better if it’s practical.

I’m sure that I usually write about horse flies at this time of year. Some people have an awful reaction to being bitten by them. I’m lucky in so far as not only do I not react (apart from swearing and swatting them), I don’t often get bitten. My brother insists it’s because I’m too bitter.

Avon’s Skin So Soft (Original) body spray used to be the ‘outdoorists’ best kept secret, but not so much now. Thankfully, whilst it’s less of a secret, it’s still pretty effective for most people, including the SAS and Scottish fishermen.

I have the Skin So Soft in the truck, and use it when I remember, but I have taken to wearing the Pestect’s Mosquito Repellent Bracelets. Mostly because I like them, but I do think whilst they’re supposed to be mostly effective against mosquitoes, they also deter horse flies.

Or maybe I am just bitter!

And if you don’t fancy a Tilley hat, a neck fan, freezing a bottle of squash, or you missed out on the Big Baileys Fan Sale last week then maybe consider getting a ‘snow room’. All the rage with the super-rich, these £1000,000 indoor winter wonderlands, set at frosty temperatures with white flakes falling gently from the ceiling, are designed to keep you super cool. I’m sure it won’t be long before Matthew is selling them in Baileys stores.