Quiet beginnings

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Being a caring fellow, I will ease you gently into a new year of gardening by telling you the story of my pyracantha.

Pyracantha - or firethorn - is a much undervalued plant. It's a big spiny shrub, originally from China, and is most usually seen as a rather neglected specimen planted near a fence or boundary. It forms an excellent barrier as it would be a very foolish burglar who tried to climb over a pyracantha - it is on the Metropolitan Police's list of natural protectors.

However, this is not taking full advantage of the adaptability of this plant; it is a shrub that thrives on pruning. You hack a bit off and it will come back at you with ten new shoots. As a result it is easy to shape and can be used as a very effective architectural plant. When we built this house there was a lot of wall either side of the front door and I was looking for a suitable climber. There are basically three sorts of plant that are good for covering walls: self clinging climbers (like Hydrangea petiolaris), climbers that need support (like roses) and shrubs that can be persuaded to do what you tell them to do (like ceanothus).

I decided on the pyracantha (a variety called 'Mojave') and chose to grow it into quite disciplined espaliers. Ten years later and it is one of my great pleasures. The dark green leaves go perfectly with the aged brick, in the spring it is covered with frothy white flowers and come the autumn the branches are laden with red berries. When the hard frosts come we then have a wonderful flurry of blackbirds that descend upon the plants and quickly strip them of berries (not the best photograph but they are very jumpy).

I get a bit fernickety over supporting wires for climbers. I like them to be as tight as guitar strings, so I always use straining bolts attached to vine eyes, which is all very nautical and satisfying. Maintenance is easy - a quick haircut twice a year and tying the shoots into the straining wires with string. A relatively simple way to turn a bit of an ugly duckling into a princess (if you don't mind my mixing up my fairy stories).

Happy New Year to you all - "Lang may yer lums reek."

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