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slowly, keeping your basket well fed.More ideas and advice for growing exoticsFollow Sarah Raven's video advice on caring for orchids.Learn how to check banana plants for frost damage with Sarah Raven's advice.Discover how to grow a peanut plant

couple of years ago that made me look sinister and a bit like Peter Lorre). It’s a bit of a shock, but will soon grow out and look much better. Everybody wins.This trick will also work on geranium, sedum, veronicastrum, anthemis, helenium and many other

. Don't overlook ornamental grasses, which can lift a border into the designer league. And don't forget to grow a few spare plants in pots, so you can slot them into gaps that may appear in a scheme.A diverse choiceAlso known as montbretia

, the occasional rose clings on, the Sedum has sprawled and the seed catalogues thud onto the doormat (postal strikes permitting).It is the most relaxed time in the garden not just because the plants are semi-comatose but also because there is not a lot to do

roll of sedum matting. You wouldn't have to spoil your paintwork - it could attach to the car like a roof rack, and you could even change it with the seasons. The challenge, of course, would be to design a green roof that wouldn't weigh anything, so

AstilbesAstrantiasBegoniasCrocosmiasEuphorbiasFernsFuchsiasGrassesHardy geraniumsHelleboresHydrangeasJapanese anemonesLady's mantleLavendersLilium henryiPelargoniumsPenstemonsRosesSedums20 top slug-beatersDon't overfeed young plants in spring, as this only encourages soft growth, which slugs love to eat.Top tips for foiling

, weekly feeding and frequent deadheading do create more work at a time when, to be honest, there are other things I'd rather be doing in the garden. Riding to the rescue have come a growing assortment of succulents - more unusual plants with very few

and hoverflies are still on the wing, foraging for food. Nectar provides insects with energy to fly and builds them up for winter hibernation. By growing just one source of nectar-rich food, you can improve these insects' chances of surviving the cold months

throughout the year can help ensure there are always nectar sources available.Year-round nectarWe planted the Nectar Bar in autumn, with flowers such as buddleias, asters and sedums, to attract insects later in the season.The perfect lawn may please

the end of the 2012 growing season. The reason I’m flustered is that there’s so much still to do, and the most urgent job is to bring any tender plants that are still outside under cover before they’re damaged.I have a lovely selection of tender succulents