Lord Bellingham, Carsely's biggest landholder, has enraged locals by saying he is going to sell off their allotments to make way for a new housing development. So when he turns up dead, poisoned by antifreeze, nobody mourns his passing ... Agatha is introduced to three old-timers Harry Perry, Bunty Daventry and Josephine Merriweather, whilst visiting the Carsley’s allotments. They are lamenting the neglected condition of their patch. But as Harry starts to shovel through the weeds and grass, his spade comes across something hard, so he bends down and tries to move the object. And then he starts to yell ... The body is that of Peta Currie, a newcomer to the village – but who would want to murder her? Blonde and beautiful, she's every local male's favourite. And then Lord Bellingham's son engages Agatha to do some digging of her own, and very soon Agatha is thrown into a world of petty feuds, jealousies and disputes over land. It would seem that far from being tiny Gardens of Eden, Carsley's allotments are local battlefields where passions – and the body count – run high!