Plants for winter interest

• Getting colour and structure all year round in the garden is a hard task. But plants and shrubs often overlooked during summer, when they are dwarfed by their showier cousins, are essential in winter and early spring.
  
  When picking and placing your plants you need to look out for three things:
  1. Structure
  2. Colour
  3. Interest
  
  This becomes even more important over winter and early spring when you don’t have the sheer impact of colourful flowers to fall back on. Getting the right mix takes constant refinement. Not to mention discipline. It’s difficult to overlook all the striking summer plants and pick plants for winter. When you are picking any plants think about the area you plan to put them in.
• What else is there? What will it look like over winter?
  
• Do you need plants to provide height or spread?
  
• How will the size, leaf shape and colour contrast with the other plants?

Start with a few plants to give a backbone to your garden. Trees are a great starting point as they give height and shape, but pick carefully as many are too big for the typical modern garden.

Here’s my favourite trees:

• Cherry trees (prunus) - comes in very different shapes and sizes and pink and white blossom looks wonderful in spring.



• Willow - my favourite is the contorted golden curls but willows come in all sizes. Choose a bush or smaller species depending on space. Kilmarnock willows are popular for small gardens.



• Acers/Japanese maples - with spectacular colour and feathery leaves these are a real show stopper in summer but choose one with red stems and you get a bit of winter interest too.



• Magnolia - great for white or pink spring flowers. Although magnolias are really slow growing some varieties do become large trees.



• Fruit trees - extend the season into the late autumn and go for an apple, pear or plum tree.

Next pick a few architectural statement plants such as flaxes, bamboos or fatsia japonicas that look great all year round. These plants are easy to use because they look the same year round. With bronze, red and green sword like leaves flaxes are great for height and colour. Graceful rustling bamboos and stipa grasses bring height and movement. While the leathery and glossy lobed statement leaves of the fatsia (see photo) bring a bold colour to the winter garden. Don’t forget they can also be used to create an amazing focal point when planted in large modern pots.

For added architectural impact leave grass heads (see photo) and the dried spires from last summers flowers to wave in the winter sky. Allium seedheads are also great fun and add interest (see photo). Our beech hedge also looks fantastic over winter with crisp copper leaves hanging on tight.

Next pick some bushy shrubs to give body and fill the middle layer of the garden out. Go for a mix of evergreen, those that have winter berries and those that have strong coloured stems.

My favourite winter shrubs:

• Daphne - evergreen with tiny winter flowers



• Dogwood (cornus) - striking bare red stems
  
  
  


• Photina - evergreen with bright red new growth in winter (see photo)



• Callicarpa - bare stem with clusters of pink berries in winter



• Forsythia - tall bare stems with bright yellow winter flowers (see photo)



• Camellia, & Azaleas- shiny leaves with big spring flower heads





• Rosemary, thyme and bay - all year round scent and fresh herbs for cooking

Lastly for the front of the beds choose some early flowering bulbs and smaller plants to bring some early cheer. Try:

• Pieris - great flame coloured new leaves



• Ajuga - low creeping plant that’s a vivid dark purple all year round



• Hellebores - pretty white cup flowers



• Cyclamen, Snowdrops, crocus and anemones - cheery early flowering bulbs

Plant your vegetables now

When you have selected your seeds, you can start the planting up process. Most seeds will start indoors or in a greenhouse in seed trays but some can go straight out into the garden from late March/April.

Planting Guide: What to do in March & April

Sow in trays (indoors)
Leeks, chard
Cucumbers, tomatoes, chillies
Courgettes, squashes
sweet corn, aubergines

Plant out
Chitted potatoes
Onion sets
Rhubarb crowns

sow directly in seedbed
Beetroot, carrots, parsnips,
Turnips, radishes
Brocolli, cabbage, kale
Beans & peas


How to sow a seed tray
Garden centres sell a wide range of options for planting seeds but the cell trays with propagator plastic hood are the most versatile and minimise damage to the roots.
Sowing a seed tray is easy, simply:

1. Mix up some good quality seedling compost with a few handfuls of vermiculite
2. Fill each of the cells ¾ full with good quality seedling compost
3. Bang the tray a few times to get it all to settle and sprinkle a couple of seeds in each cell.
4. Sprinkle over some of the compost mix, water gently and put the plastic lid on.
5. Leave in a warm place (indoors or a greenhouse) watering regularly as they sprout.
6. After a few weeks harden them off outside (in a mini greenhouse) before you plant them into the garden or large pots

How to plant potatoes
Potatoes are best grown from “seed” potatoes, which look just like normal spuds but re treated to be virus free. Buy them in the garden centre and let them grow eyes and shoots before planting outside from late March.

1. Dig over the potato bed and rake it flat
2. Dig a trench about 15cm deep and lay the seed potatoes in it about 30cm apart.
3. Cover over with soil and put a marker in at either end of the row.
4. Alternatively you can plant them halfway down a 30cm deep large container

How to prepare a seedbed
Some vegetables like peas, carrots and lettuce are hardy enough to be planted directly in-situ. The basics are the same for all of them.

1. Dig over the area where you want to plant and if it hasn’t had any manure recently consider digging through some fertiliser.
2. Rake it flat and with a cane or rake handle draw a line in the ground. Put markers at either end.
3. Sprinkle the seeds into the small channel you’ve just made and gently cover them over with the soil.

For peas and beans:

1. Prepare the soil as normal and consider making a cane wigwam so the peas and beans have something to grow up.
2. Take a cane and push it into the ground to make 5cm deep holes around the base of the wigwam.
3. Drop the pea or bean seed into the hole and cover over.

If you want to crop peas, salad leaves or carrots all season then don’t plant all your seeds at once. Planting a small amount every 2 weeks during late March to May will mean a constant supply of fresh vegetables.

That’s it for now. Follow what's in my veg patch and just sit back and wait for your veggies to grow.

Hellebores fill the gap

I have several hellebores in the garden and they are great at filling that gap between winter and spring when nothing much is growing. I'd urge everyone to have a few. There are over 20 different hellebores, and most have lovely bell-shaped flowers.

The most famous hellebore is the Christmas rose, a lovely white and delicate nodding open flower that's so welcome over December/January.

Some are evergreen so give year round structure to garden. They are all hardy and survive the Scottish winter just fine.

European natives they have a colourful history surrounded in fokelore with connections to witchcraft for summoning demons, as a medicine in Greek mythology and by Hippocrates and a hellebore overdose is said to have killed Alexander the Great. They are poisonous so don't try eating them!

These photos show the hellebores in my garden this weekend.

Trees in bud, grey wagtails and comma butterfly

WOW! What a glorious weekend. The sun is high in the cloudless blue sky. You could be forgiven for thinking it was summer. Yesterday I saw the first butterfly of the year - a comma butterfly basking and supping on the newly opened primula.

The squirrels are running up and down the bank wrestling in all the crisp brown leaves. A family of grey wagtails, lovely small yellow breasted birds have just arrived in the garden. They dash around really quickly and walk up and down the side of the river so it took a while to photograph it.


The trees look beautiful in full bud so here's a selection of photos taken this weekend in my garden.

March in the garden: Time to pick your veggies

As soon as things start stirring in the garden it’s time to think about what vegetables you’d like to grow. Don’t be put off thinking they are boring or hard work. Vegetables are great. Not only can you eat them but they can look as beautiful and interesting as the flowers in you garden. And just like flowers, there are vegetables for all seasons, care levels and situations. Some people like spending hours perfecting giant and perfect show vegetables but for many vegetable growing can be as simple as “sow and go”.

Why grow your own vegetables?

• Save money - It’s about 10x cheaper to grow your own, so for anyone facing the effects of the credit crunch or wanting their money to go further it’s a no-brainer. For example, to enjoy fresh salad leaves all summer you can spend £2 on seeds compared to over £20 buying a couple of packs of salad from the supermarket each week.



• Better for you - You know they are fresh and chemical free because you control how its grown including the use of fertilisers or pesticides. Go organic.



• They taste better - yes, they really do. Firstly, there is a better choice of more flavoursome varieties to choose from and secondly, vegetables are better eaten when freshly picked and full of nutrients.



• It’s fun and interesting to watch them grow - and if you have kids it’s a great way of teaching them where food comes from.

Picking which veggies you’ll grow at this time of year is great fun. In the last few years local garden centres have started stocking a wider and more adventurous range of seeds and if you want something really unusual try a specialist vegetable catalogue. If you are new to vegetable growing, pick two or three easy care options and give it a go.

Here’s my top 5 tips for picking your veggies

1. What vegetables do you like? Concentrate on growing veg that you’ll eat.

2. What size is your garden and where will you grow your vegetables? Some veg, like cabbages can take up a lot of space while others can be grown in pots so pick carefully.

Plants you can grow in pots or bags

• Tomatoes & chillies
  
• Carrots & potatoes


• Salad leaves, herbs and chives

3. Do you have a greenhouse or sunny sheltered spot? If not give tomatoes, cucumbers, chillies or aubergines a miss as they need lots of sunny warmth. Chillies also grow well in a pot on a sunny windowsill.

4. When you want to harvest? If you want to get the most out of your vegetable patch then plan carefully to harvest continually throughout the summer and autumn.

5. How much time have you got? if you don’t have time to spend potting on delicate seedlings, feeding plants and putting up protective coverings the try the easy-care veggies.

Easy-care options include

• Climbing beans and peas
  
• Carrots & potatoes
  
• Salad leaves, herbs and chives
  

Find out how to plant your veg

First butterfly of 2009

I saw the first butterfly of the year in the garden today. As you can see from this photo I managed to get quite close as it sat basking and feeding on the newly emerged Primula. Anyone else seeing butterflies yet?

See your garden grow this year - start with a Spring Review

Spring is in the air but before you dash out, spade in hand, now is the time to plan what you’d like to do with your garden this year. Get the most out of it by starting with a spring review. Here’s how:

1. Make a wishlist

Take a walk around your garden and make a list of things you’d like to change or add. Perhaps you’d like to introduce a new area or feature or you just need to changing some of the existing plants around. Get planning. To start try answering these questions:

• Do you have an area you can sit in? All gardens need an area where you can relax and enjoy them from. What type of seating you need depends on how you want to use your garden. If it’s a party garden then create a social BBQ seating area. If it’s a private retreat then a hidden bench is ideal. There’s a huge choice of garden furniture now that blend with the style of your garden but for a real wow factor you should think about getting something custom made that add a real design feature to your garden. Try Fusion Metalwork

• Do you want to grow veg or fruit? No matter how small your garden is you can grow vegetables. Many grow perfectly well in pots so there’s really no excuse. Growing your own is really rewarding, healthy and cheap so why wouldn’t you? If the credit crunch is biting turn those fingers green and make your money go further.
  
• Do you have a composting area? With everyone needing to recycle more, a composting bin is ideal. Not only can you get rid of your garden rubbish easily but you can recycle some household waste too.


• Did you notice any blank or overcrowded areas last year? If you need to move established plants then now is a good time to do it for most plants (but you are better to check the specific preferences of each plant before you move it). If you didn’t get a chance to do it last autumn, you can also subdivide large bushy perennial plants like geraniums, crocosmia or grasses.



• Do you need to add any new beds, walls or other features to the garden? If you are harbouring any desires for a water feature, new pathway or deck or a raised bed then get those ideas down on the wishlist now.

2. Look for inspiration

Now you know what needs fixed and added, you can look for ideas and inspiration all around you. Here’s a few places to start:

• There are lots of good websites, magazines, books and gardening catalogues. Try BBC's Gardeners World



• Visit a few local gardens - as well as gardens in stately homes look out for gardens open schemes in your area. It’s always really helpful to see plants and ideas in situ.



• Go along to your nearest garden show. There are always some great ideas and interesting new plants. The Three Counties RHS show at Malvern is responsible for igniting my gardening passion. I was dragged along there 10 years ago and have never looked back since. It completely changed my perception of gardening. I now see gardening as a creative outlet that gives me a lot of pleasure and not the boring horticultural task I’d viewed it as before then. No-one can believe the green-fingers I’ve developed!



• Gather together photographs of all the plants and ideas you like and stick them onto a big piece of board. You’ll start to see themes developing and it’ll help crystallise your ideas and turn them into plans.

3. Be realistic
Once you’ve got your list of ideas - take a look over and knock a few unrealistic ones off if necessary until you’ve got a plan that’s achievable. You’ll need to consider:

• What your garden is like: If you’ve got a postage stamp sized garden then a wild flower meadow with stream may not work.




• Its situation: If its in the chilly north then a tropical floral jungle may be a bit more tricky. Another of the benefits of visiting local gardens is that you can see what grows happily near you - and choose things that are more likely to work.




• The amount of time and money you’ve got - not just to achieve these ideas now but to look after the garden year round.
  

Remember, nothing is impossible - you just might need to be a little more creative in how you achieve it.

4. Make a shopping list

Now you’ve got a plan, make a list of all the seeds, bulbs, plant, landscaping materials and other items you’ll need. Get quotes and prices and see how it all adds up. Visit your local garden centre or go online to the likes of Crocus, Thompson Morgan or jparkers. If you’ve got some landscaping to do, sort out that first and order the plants when you’ve finished.

5. Preparation

March is the ideal time of year to get out there and clean the garden. Prune back the any dead growth, sweep up the leaves and turn over the soil. Just be careful not to disturb any of this years new growth.

It’s still a little too early to plant out in Scotland, but start seed trays indoors in preparation for next month. Make sure you clean old seed trays thoroughly in bleachy water before using them. If you have several packets of seeds to plant its worth getting a three layer mini greenhouse with a plastic zip up cover if you don’t have access to a greenhouse. For the best price, order one online at the likes of Amazon. There's a link at the bottom of this page.

Spring has sprung - it’s time to get out in the garden

Have you noticed? Things are springing back into life all around you. I love this time of year. It’s the middle of March and the dark bleakness of winter is over and little reminders of summer joy are emerging everywhere. Take a walk around your garden or nearest park and look at what’s happening out there. It’s good for the spirit as well as exercising off those extra winter pounds.

To help you get the most from your garden this year, this new series will look at what needs doing in the garden each month and provide a host of creative ideas and practical guides on how to create your own dream garden.

To tempt you out, here’s what’s happening in my garden in mid March….

The first things you notice are the blousy purple and white crocuses trumpeting to the world. The purple ones appeared first last week, but today they are joined by white and lilac striped ones. Being in Scotland, it’s a little colder here so my garden is often a few weeks behind those in more southern parts of the UK. The daffodil heads are fattening in anticipation but are yet to burst forth.

It’s a lovely day and the wind is rustling through the trees as it hurries the big white clouds through the bright blue sky. The birds are singing loudly from the trees. I’ve got to know them rather well over winter as they’ve been the main source of activity in the garden for the last few months. Everytime I’ve filled up the bird feeder, it’s been like a crack squadron of tits and finches that have descended on the garden. With dozens of them lining up in fly-in order to empty it in record time, I think they’ve all developed a serious addiction to Bill Oddie’s nuts (the black sunflower seeds to be exact)!

Looking closer at the ground I can see lots of strangely alien looking plants peeking out. The scrunched up red of the rhubarb gingerly protrudes, while thick green leaves unroll to reveal the delicate lilac of the primulas. Don’t miss the catkins! My magnolia stellata has cracking furry buds on it that you can’t resist stroking. All the trees are starting to bud but none have thrown the first leaf yet.

The all-year garden staples are still going strong having survived the winter frosts. The castor oil plant (fatsia japonica) and bamboo nigra are the brightest surprises as they show off their acidy green leaves. Over the other side of the garden, the glossy bright read leaves of the photina and the sword like leaves of the flaxes are waving in the wind.

Spring Review

March is the perfect time to do a review of your garden. This makes sure you get the most from your garden and helps you build a plan of action. Find out how to do a spring review here.

This year’s big tasks in my garden include: the veg patch, sorting a problem flower bed and adding a small platform over the stream at the bottom of the garden. And if I get time, I’d like to do some garden mosaic.

My veg patch is going to back to basics, since last years more exotic fayre was a washout thanks to the wet weather. Potatoes, peas, fennel, beetroot and carrots are going in the veg bed, with salad leaves, herbs, tomatoes, rhubarb, raspberries, blueberries and chillies elsewhere round the garden.

Its normal that as things grow and plants get unruly or crowded and changes are needed. But over winter I’ve noticed that my crescent shaped bed lacks good basic planting structure to see it through the year so things are about to change in that bed this year.

The third project, is the make the most of the stream and lovely views we have at the bottom of the garden by creating a secret platform that juts out over the water. That’ll be an interesting project.


Future reports will follow each of these projects and share many other ideas and tips to create your own dream garden.

The garden is prepped and the seeds are bought…so bring on the spring!