Having extolled the virtues of our wild primrose (Day 72) – which perfectly matched the mood of early March – I’m finding the stronger April light is calling for something a bit more gregarious, and Primula ‘Blue Sapphire’ fits the bill nicely…
Read moreDay 109: Paeonia mlokosowitschii
You know that annoying thing when people from different ethnic backgrounds end up getting called ‘Fred’ because no one can be bothered to pronounce their name correctly? It happens to plants too…
Read moreDay 108: a place to sit
Seating is one of the most overlooked aspects of the garden. I’m not talking about deckchairs and sun loungers, nor even patio furniture – that’s all very well and purpose-specific…
Read moreDay 107: Euphorbia polychroma
There is probably a spurge for every occasion in the garden – indoors too, for that matter, when you consider that the poinsettia is a member of the Euphorbia clan…
Read moreDay 106: wallflowers
Wallflowers are one of the plants I remember from my childhood – rows of deep oranges, yellow and reds along the garden path, and that gorgeous scent that fills the whole garden.
Read moreDay 105: amelanchier light
We are lucky to have a back garden that faces west. This came about by the happiest of accidents – it certainly wasn’t on our house-hunting criteria – but it means that we get to enjoy the evening light as the sun slips below the horizon…
Read moreDay 104: fern unfurling
I don’t care what you think you’ve achieved; if you’ve not sat and gazed at a fern unfurling, you’ve not yet lived…
Read moreDay 103: Dead wood
We felled a young ash sapling last weekend that had shot up with indecent speed in a corner of the garden. Most of its wood will be bound for the log store, but some will stay at the back of the plot…
Read moreDay 102: snake's-head fritillary
I come over all unnecessary when the snake’s-head fritillaries (Fritillaria meleagris) are out – the white variety is charming, but you really need the contrast of the darker purple to appreciate the chequered markings to the fullest extent…
Read moreDay 101: purple periwinkle
This is the flower that cured me of my indifference to vinca. One glimpse of that little, deep violet face peering up at me from a tangle of small, dark green leaves, and I was hooked…
Read moreDay 100: Tulipa turkestanica
Species tulips are a bit special. Smaller, a touch more refined and less showy than the big blousey hybrids that we all love…
Read moreDay 99: going to seed
It’s almost ‘job done’ for this hellebore, Helleborus x sternii – a beautiful hybrid between the holly-leaved and the Majorcan hellebore…
Read moreDay 98: sea kale
It appears most unlikely that anything as lush and floriferous as sea kale (Crambe maratima) could grow on the shingle shores of Dungeness, but it seems to like it here…
Read moreDay 97: groundsel
I try to make a habit of being on the side of weeds, but it’s hard to love groundsel (Senecio vulgaris) …
Read moreDay 96: dewdrops on lupins
Lupins don’t reach their full show-stopping potential till next month, at which point their colourful spires take centre stage in the beds and borders…
Read moreDay 95: mind your own business
So many great things about this little cushion of green with its tiny leaves, not least being able to say “mind your own business” to people when they enquire after its name…
Read moreDay 94: Helleborus 'Hillier Hybrid Slate'
Plant breeders can be an optimistic lot. So much so that it’s not uncommon for flowers touted as ‘black’ to require the most strenuous act of imagination to be seen as anything other than a darkish kind of purple…
Read moreDay 93: Chionodoxa sardensis
You could, if you were feeling argumentative, get into a barney over whether these are Chionodoxa or Scilla sardensis…
Read moreDay 92: trillium
Every now and then, you should treat your garden to something a little out of the ordinary and, unless you’re particularly up for a challenge, not too hard to grow…
Read moreDay 91: gorse
Gorse (Ulex europeaus) is possibly one of the most useful plants you’ll ever meet…
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