One of the most satisfying jobs that I've ever had the enjoyment to work on in my garden was setting up a water garden or pond for my own pleasure. Nothing beats sitting by a pond on an evening having a glass of wine. Just watching the fish happily swimming around with the knowledge that you have created their environment for them, it provides an incredible feeling of satisfaction.

Aponogeton distachyos is one of one of the best Deep-water aquatics, it's an easy plant to grow with leaves which tend to be evergreen and flowers that appear for months on end.

Golden Club (Orontium)

Orontium aquaticum is a trouble free and non-invasive plant with just one fussy requrement, it does will need plenty of soil, so remember to plant it in a deep Water Lily basket. It should grow in shallow water, but it needs a planting depth of not less than 1ft. if you'd like the leaves to float around the water surface instead of standing erect out of the water. The foliage is attractive with blue-green above and silvery below. The greatest feature of this member of the Arum family is the bizarre flower head. This stands above the water like a pure white pencil having a tip which is coloured gold by a mass of little yellow florets. This is one aquatic plant that I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone.

Water Hawthorn (Aponogenton)

Aponogeton distachyos is an example of one of the most effective Deep-water aquatics, undoubtedly an easy plant to grow with leaves which tend to be evergreen and flowers that appear for months on end. These curious flowers borne on spikes which float around the surface, each flower has waxy white petals and black anthers. The fragrance is powerful, variously described as 'vanilla and 'Hawthorn-like'. The oblong leaves are sometimes blotched with brown and the eventual spread is about 2 ft. Unlike a Water Lily it should flourish in partial shade and moving water, but be sure that it is deep enough for the tubers to be below the ice in winter.

Pond Lily (Nuphar)

This is certainly a relative of the Water Lily family however it is not as attractive as it's illustrious cousin. The flowers are small, rather plain and are carried on thick stems above the water. You will find, however, a few distinct advantages, light ans shade is no problem and neither is moving water. For an average sized pond choose 'Nuphar minima' (N. pumila). The yellow flowers are about 1inch across and the under-water foliage is translucent. Unfortunately, the types on offer tend to be the giant ones such as N. lutea (Brandy Bottle) with its 3 inch bottle shaped yellow flowers which smell strongly of alcohol. This is only ideal for a huge pond or lake.

Water Fringe (Nymphoides)

There is simply one basic species - Nymphoides peltata, commonly generally known as Floating Heart. Inside the catalogues you might locate it listed as Villarsia bennettii or Limnanthermum nymphoides. The miniature Water Lily-like leaves measure about 2 inches across and are sometimes crinkly edged and blotched or spotted with brown. The 11/2 inch yellow flower is more sort of a Buttercup than a Water Lily, and also the petal edges are fringed. The blooms are borne in small clusters. This is a useful plant for giving rapid surface cover before Water Lilies become too established, however it might get out of hand.