Reader's question: GEMMA has bought some beautiful pink and white stargazer lilies with the intention of planting them outdoors in her front border.

She wants to know what conditions suit them best and whether they will come back next year. If so, she asks, does she have to care for them in any particular way?

STARGAZER lilies are spectacular flowers that can brighten any landscape with their lively splash of exotic colour. These Oriental lilies are easy to care for and bloom for two weeks or more during the height of summer. Traditional pink stargazers symbolize wealth and prosperity and are considered a sign of aspiration. The lesser-known white stargazer is a sign of purity and sympathy. Whichever you have in the garden, this magnificent flower will bring attention to any border and will fill the area with its sweet fragrance.

Stargazers thrive best when they receive six hours of direct sunlight every day. They prefer morning sun, but shade in the afternoon heat. Stargazers will tolerate partial shade, but the blooms will suffer without adequate sunshine.

Remove any old blooms as soon as they have lost their colour or begin to lose petals. Do not cut back the plant straight after blooming but allow the foliage to continue to grow so that the plant can direct its energy towards bulb formation rather than to seed or leaf generation.

Cut the plants back to the soil level once the leaves have turned brown and mulch with a three to four-inch layer of old leaves, hay or straw to protect bulbs during the winter. Make sure you leave a label or some sort of marker in the ground, as there is a chance of losing the exact location of the bulbs and digging them over or slicing through them in the spring.

Give them a good fertilising with an all-purpose feed in the spring when you see the first signs of new growth and again just before blooming. Use a highphosphorus fertiliser just prior to blooming to promote large brightlycoloured petals. They should, if treated properly, reward you year upon year.

Jobs this week

■ Sweet peas benefit from being sown from August to October and going through the chill of winter. They spend more energy on root growth rather than sappy leaf growth. Sow the seeds in pots and keep them just moist in a cold frame or a cool section in an unheated greenhouse.

■ Before throwing out nasturtium, harvest as many seeds as you can and store them in a labelled envelope for next year. Any green ones can be pickled in vinegar that has been boiled for ten minutes with a pinch of salt and some peppercorns. They have the very same taste as expensive capers.

Event

CASTLE Eden Dene, near Peterlee, is hosting a summer long series of events for families in association with Natural England. Activities include bat and guided walks, owl pellet investigations, wildlife craft workshops, storytelling and music sessions.

Brigid presents the BBC Tees Gardening Show on Sundays from 1pm to 2pm.

Questions can be answered on the day by emailing brigidpress@bbc.co.uk anytime during the week, or texting 07786-200995 and phoning 01642-225511 during the show.