Garden Notes
Plants for Seasonal Interest
Winter
Siberian Dogwood Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’
For much of the year this deciduous shrub is an unassuming plant with ovate green leaves in spring and summer but after losing its leaves in autumn it displays brightly coloured stems. If you have a large space to fill they look spectacular planted in a large group. Another variety worth planting is Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’, it has orange/red and yellow stems.
Farrer viburnum Viburnum farreri
A deciduous shrub with pink buds which open to form white flowers producing a strong sweet scent in winter. Coppery coloured leaves appear initially and turn green in spring. Ideal for placing where the blossom can be seen from indoors or next to paths where the scent can be enjoyed when walking by. They will grow in sun or shade. Alternatives would include Viburnum bodnantense ‘Dawn’ or ‘Charles Lamont’ which are usually readily available to purchase from garden centres or online.
Common Snowdrop Galanthus nivalis
A very welcome sight in the garden with the first flowers appearing as early as January especially in areas of woodland and gardens where the winter sun reaches the ground. They have a reputation for being difficult to establish in a garden and I have certainly found it difficult to grown them from dry bulbs planted in the Autumn in my own garden. I have had success from planting them “in the green”, this is when they have finished flowering but still have green leaves. These can be purchased online by ordering in January for delivery in February or March and should be planted as soon as possible after delivery in moisture retentive soil in semi shade. When large clumps have formed after a few years these can be lifted and divided after flowering and planted in new locations in the garden.
Spring
Hellebore Helleborus
There are so many attractive Hellebores available, from the classic white Helleborus niger often seen in garden centres at Christmas to the deep red Helleborus x hybridus ‘Harvington Red’ and many other colours. Their cup shaped, pendulous rose like flowers are a useful source of nectar for bees at a time of year when there are few others flowers available. Hellebores usually retain their leaves throughout the year and thrive in shadier spots with a long flowering period starting in winter and lasting well into spring. The leaves can start to look tatty and may have succumbed to leaf spot by the end of the season and it is well worth while removing the leaves in November to tidy them up and to reveal the new growth as it appears in late winter or early spring.
Camellia
An obvious choice for a spring interest plant but a beautiful one nonetheless. A glossy green leaved evergreen shrub available in varying shades of pink, red, white and some yellow with single and double flowers, there is a variety to suit all gardens. They prefer acidic soils but where the soil is not suitable it is still possible to grow Camellias in containers with ericaceous compost. A particularly attractive variety is Camellia x williamsii ‘Debbie’ which flowers from April for several weeks with many large pink peony shaped blooms which drop cleanly from the plant when spent unlike those on some varieties of Camellia japonica which tend to remain on the plant when they have turned brown and may need dead heading. Another advantage of the Camellia x williamsii is that they tend to flower in lower light levels than Camellia japonica which could be useful for a more shaded area.
Flowering cherry tree Prunus
These deciduous spring flowering trees are available in a variety of sizes from the larger trees such as Prunus serrulata ‘Kanzan’ which can reach the height of 12m, Prunus ‘Accolade’ reaching between 8 and 10m and compact plants including Prunus ‘Kojo no mai’ which has a twisting growth habit, white flowers with a pink tinge and are suitable for growing in pots. Cherry trees often have beautiful coloured leaves in autumn and some species have interesting coloured bark, the Tibetan Cherry, Prunus serrula, often chosen for its coppery coloured shiny young bark in spring.
Summer
