Editor's note

Sitting out in the garden is a pleasure during a warm spell, but while you’re soaking up those rays, spare a thought for the plants. Like us, plants love a bit of shade and a refreshing drink – but when’s the best time to do the watering? Alastair Culham gives his top tips for protecting your garden during a heatwave. And, if you are lucky enough to have a garden, you might like to put in a pond. As Becky Thomas writes, the UK’s amphibian population is in decline and even a small pool of water makes a welcome habitat for frogs and toads.

Editor-turned-television presenter Piers Morgan engaged with scientist (and radio presenter) Brian Cox in a Twitter debate about the existence of God, the universe and everything. Morgan believes there must be some cause for the universe while Cox questions his logic. Philosopher Nikk Effingham runs an eye over both men’s arguments and finds that, while only one of them can be right, both of them are justified in believing what they do.

Department stores are in jeopardy, from House of Fraser in the UK to Myer in Australia. Where once they held high streets together, now they are exacerbating their decline. But retail expert Ruth Marciniak believes we’re simply seeing a classic shakeout. Here are her five tips for making department stores fit for purpose, with a whistlestop tour of the best the world has to offer. Nelson Blackley and Anthony Kent also give their take on why UK high streets need help – with fears that the number of empty shops could rise to 100,000 in the next decade.

Holly Squire

Commissioning Editor

Top stories

shutterstock.

The best time to water your plants during a heatwave

Alastair Culham, University of Reading

A gardening expert reveals the simple things you can do to protect your garden during a heatwave.

Shutterstock

Make your garden frog friendly – amphibians are in decline thanks to dry ponds

Becky Thomas, Royal Holloway

As ponds dry up, so too does our connection to nature.

Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel

Piers Morgan and Brian Cox debate the existence of God: a philosopher's take

Nikk Effingham, University of Birmingham

The television presenter and the scientist are having an argument about God on Twitter, and Morgan is getting a lot of stick. That's not fair.

As seen on a high street near you. Shutterstock

There is hope for the high street – here's how to transform it

Nelson Blackley, Nottingham Trent University; Anthony Kent, Nottingham Trent University

The challenges facing town centres and high streets are intensifying.

Famous dome in Galeries Lafayette, Paris. A. Wee

Department stores are not doomed – take a look at who's doing it right

Ruth Marciniak, Glasgow Caledonian University

Glance at House of Fraser, John Lewis et al and you might think it's time to give up the ghost.

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