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Gardening tips: catch rare camellias in full bloom

<span>Photograph: Alamy</span>
Photograph: Alamy

Visit this The Grade I-listed conservatory at Chiswick House in London is home to 33 varieties of camellia: at their flowery peak until 22 March. The gardens are open from 10am to 3pm daily, chiswickhouseandgardens.org.uk.

Plant this Strawberry saxifrage (Saxifraga stolonifera) is equally content on a windowsill indoors as in shady, sheltered corners outside. Its rosette of hairy, fleshy leaves are joined by spikes of delicate white flowers in early summer; the plant sends out wire-thin runners that grow baby plants. Look out for the stunning green, white and pink cultivar ‘Tricolor’.

Treat this Your home is filled with plants – great. But is it also filled with tiny black flies. Fungus gnats lay eggs in houseplant compost, and the larvae can damage the roots of young plants. The best treatment is parasitic nematodes (available from ladybirdplantcare.co.uk).