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taste for single colours.Pictured above is a brand new zinnia that you may have discovered this year, but will be widely available in the 2011 seed catalogues. It's called 'Purple Prince' and I've been trialling it this summer. I love it! Growing up

, and Helleborus niger, the Christmas rose, which starts to flush pink in January and February.Januarywinteran hourHelleborus niger 10cm pot x3Carex buchananii 2 litre pot x130cm satin zinc cube potPeat free, multi-purpose compostElectric drillCrocksWatering can

once watched a great tit dive into a clump of forget-me-not to retrieve a fat caterpillar. I also grow native shrubs such as holly, guelder rose and dog rose. A native hedge can also help moths – a mix of species including hawthorn, hazel, dog rose

unexpected like the tawny leaves of beech with ruffles of ice, or the stems of roses which suddenly grow three times as many thorns.There are all sorts of winter treasures to find out there in the frost - not just in your gardens but in parks, hedgerows

blown away by their scent. I also like Viburnum x bodnantense ‘Dawn’, which produces clusters of tiny rose-pink flowers on bare stems from October to March. However, I’ve seen too many viburnums growing in ‘municipal’ settings to want to grow them in my

out of the ground when dormant. They weigh less and require less maintenance than container-grown plants, so are therefore cheaper. Bargains are to be had at garden centres and nurseries between now and March, so if you’re planning on growing a hedge

is an organic method of maintaining a natural balance in your garden, aiding pollination and keeping pest numbers down. Common plant combinations include growing herbs with roses to deter aphids, and planting alliums around carrots to ward off carrot root fly

don't waste this valuable resource.Watering can or hosepipeWatering can rose or fine spray nozzleWater-retaining granulesMicro-drip irrigation system and timerWater buttlate-March - early September20 minutesAlways water your plants in the cool

're happy with the look of your arrangement, water in the plants to settle compost around the roots. Remove the rose from the watering can and gently water around the plants, not over them. If any gaps appear between the roots of the plants, simply add a

't be a problem. Fantastic if you could grow roses so far north. Still, beautiful as the scenery was, I'd not swap it for our variable and often excessively wet climate, with all its rewards of tasty, tender veg we've been enjoying since our return!