Search - Articles

of that fabulous scent: the philadelphus, or mock orange.There are a number of different varieties, all deciduous with white flowers and unremarkable foliage. In the first garden I had that actually possessed any soil (the first two were just concrete yards) I

ripened and Richard Cox took the pips from the apple marked by his wife and sowed them in the garden. Most did not survive but two seedlings flourished. One became the very first specimen of 'Cox's Orange Pippin', which is probably the most popular apple

, it boasts the most spectacular colour. The leaves are 70 shades of scarlet, and they contrast with the extraordinary orange seeds and pink seed-pods. The whole plant makes an eyeball-searing spectacle - almost hallucinogenic.In parts of the USA, Euonymus

there to stop people walking on the grass but even the French are not that fierce).The most impressive thing was the standard of bedding. Rather than strict lines or groups the plants were arranged much more informally. Great swathes of orange dahlias, salvias

. 'Ballerina' - soaring orange T. 'Negrita' - beetroot coloured T. 'Queen of the Night' - dark and truly gorgeous T. 'Anthraceit' - flowers like the backsides of turkeys (but prettier) T. tarda - early and peppery scentedI could go on for ever but it would

-in-law's garden, where it overhangs her pond — it was love at first sight. Who could resist the delightful, slightly curled leaves? Especially when, come the autumn, they transform into an extraordinarily flamboyant conflagration of red and orange. Parrotias

, to custard coloured daisies (Layia platyglossa), candy pink campion, mallows, coreopsis, gypsophila, corncockles and grinning sunflowers. My favourite is probably the little Linaria reticulata (you can see its little magenta and orange flowers in this picture

cm) but the pale yellow flowers have a rather charming twist. Good for pots and the front of borders.Dahlia 'David Howard': reminds me of the finest chunky cut marmalade. The orange is quite strong but very cheerful. I grow it with the second flush

division compared to its more spectacular cousins which are all flaming orange or the red of bloodthirsty sunsets. I beg to differ; it may not be drop-dead spectacular but when the rising sun glitters across the frosty, dew-spattered leaves

flower first in June and then produce orange hips. You then have the choice to leave the hips on the bush and enjoy them in the winter, or to deadhead the whole thing and hang on for a few weeks until it flowers again.Alternatively, you can do what I try