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Rachel de Thame explains the secrets of the soil conditions in which alpine plants thrive, with recipes for the perfect growing medium.spring or autumnMore on growing alpinesMaking an alpine path and gravel bedPlanting up alpines video project

New plants at Chelsea 2008The plant marquee is packed with new, and often awe-inspiring cultivars. Here are some of our favourites from this year's show.Jarava ichu, or Peruvian feather grass, forms mounds of bright green foliage with showy, silver

Watch Joe Swift's practical video demonstration on choosing marginal plants for a garden pond. Plant choices include Cyperus involucratus, Equisetum hyemale and arum lily.summerMore water gardening projectsGrowing marginal plants in a container

Filling your garden with colour can be an expensive business. Garden centres and nurseries are packed with attractive bedding plants in April and May, which are perfect to plant out for an almost instant show.This convenience comes at a price. It

Chilli plants will thrive on a sunny window sill or in a greenhouse. They have a long cropping season, so you could still be harvesting fresh chillies in December. You will need just two small pots to sow your chilli seeds; use a good quality seed

Pond plantsWater enhances any garden, and there are a wide range of aquatic plants that will thrive when submerged in a pond. We spoke to expert grower Linda Smith at BBC Gardeners' World Live 2009, who recommended 10 of the best plants for garden

How much water does a house plant need? Most prefer a reliable source of moisture – neither too much, nor too little. In most cases, house plants will readily reveal their needs, which vary from plant to plant and season to season. If you learn

. By planting tulips in aquatic baskets, you can 'trick' them into performing well.Simply plant your tulip bulbs in the baskets and plunge them into your borders. As soon as flowering has come to an end, lift the baskets and leave them in a sunny spot, ensuring

Chris Beardshaw demonstrates how to remove blanket weed from a pond and offers advice on adding marginal plants and oxygenators to reduce excess nitrogen.summerMore water gardening advicePlanting marginals in a containerGrowing marginal pond plants

to deep mud. They’re in a worse state than they get into in the depths of a wet winter, and it’s only the end of November. I’ve had to plant the last of my spring-flowering bulbs in containers, as I can’t plant them into the saturated soil. In an attempt