Diarmuid Gavin: How to grow water lilies in your garden pond
From dwarf varieties to flowers the size of a steering wheel, these aquatic plants have the wow factor
April to September is the best time to plant water lilies
On a hot summer’s day, we gravitate to the sound and sight of water. Ponds in the garden have many functions — cooling, soothing and aesthetic — but perhaps their most important one is to provide a habitat for a variety of wildlife. It is a source of water for birds and a home for many species of insects, such as dragonflies, damselflies, beetles and backswimmers.
On a July morning, the pond is teeming with life as skaters hover on the surface and goldfish flit around underneath, flashes of orange in the dark water. In spring, there were large, jelly-like clusters of frog spawn which began to wriggle with tadpoles. Now the frogs must be hidden somewhere in the garden, hopefully busily eating snails and slugs, with the occasional croak to be heard.
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