January - Plants of the Moment

Year-round colour & interest

By creating a garden that looks great all-year-round you’ll not only have a beautiful outlook but more opportunities to be tempted outside throughout the year to stay active and grow yourself healthy.

To give your garden structure and form choose plants that offer more than one season of interest. In particular, pick evergreen plants and architectural shrubs with green, coloured or variegated foliage that also produce seasonal flowers, and perhaps fruits or berries too.

Plant these to form the backbone to your garden, giving it structure, and adding height at the back of borders. Use their bold shapes and sizes to obscure eyesores and cover boring fences, cut down noise from roads and neighbours, and create a sense of privacy and seclusion.

Plant suggestions:

Any plants that provide year-round colour and interest e.g.

• Choisya eg ‘Sundance’ AGM, ‘Aztec Pearl’ AGM
• Hebe ‘Red Edge’ AGM
• Skimmia x confusa ‘Kew Green’ AGM
• Skimmia japonica ‘Fragrans’ AGM
• Photinia eg ‘Red Robin’ AGM
• Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Diabolo’ AGM
• Japanese spotted laurel - Aucuba japonica ‘Crotonifolia’ AGM
• Osmanthus x burkwoodii AGM
• Elaeagnus x submacrophylla ‘Limelight’
• Euonymus, Pieris, etc, etc.