The joy of a hobby - All work and no play...

It will not come as a surprise to anyone lucky enough to know one that gardeners are generally happier than non-gardeners and less susceptible to depression.

A UK poll has found that someone with space in their life for a hobby, be it walking, angling or even computing, is far more likely to be satisfied with their lot than those who do not.

Though this seems an obvious truth our modern, hectic lives, especially for those with young children, leave little or no room for that kind of hugely positive idling defined by an obsession with hills, rivers or begonias. It is probably easier said that done but we should all try to find a diversion to counterbalance life’s unrelenting challenges.

And anyway, life is far too short not to do something purely for the love of it.