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terracotta pots with polythene to reduce evaporation from the sides of the pot.Mulch soil around plants with straw or bark to prevent evaporation of water from the soil's surface. This will also ward off slugs and prevent weeds from growing, which compete

, and provided the drainage is sharp so that they don't get waterlogged, they do not appear to mind the cold.I prefer growing mine in pots, moving them around every few weeks to create a fresh display. Come autumn these will be carried into my unheated greenhouse

are 'creative, colourful and convenient'. In other words, they'd like us all to buy and plant more of these valuable evergreen shrubs.I find it surprising that while most of us love seasonal colour in our gardens, and invest a great deal of time and money in pot

I recently visited the community orchard at Haggerston Park. It makes a lovely little wildlife sanctuary amidst the concrete of built-up Hackney: all fruit trees, wildflowers and long grass. It's also home to a few ornamental plants, including pot

through my Seasonal Checklist…1. Wrap pots or bring insideI’ve lost count of the number of terracotta pots I’ve lost in recent years that have been cracked and damaged by frost. To avoid adding more to the tally I’m emptying any not in use and storing them

, transplant my display of Allium roseum and phacelia from one pot into another, and sort the herb pot out.As much as I love my frogs, I'll be dismantling their grow bag habitat. There's plenty of dense foliage for them to shelter beneath now and, as soon as I

and reaches 35cm in height.'Rijnveld's Early Sensation'Clusters of cup-and-saucer flowers top the pencil-length stems of this dainty cultivar in March and April. It's a great little daffodil for growing in pots or the front of a border. It has a very sweet

’ll enjoy a long-lasting display of colour in your home.The actual flowers of bromeliads are small and insignificant, but surrounding them are bright, colourful bracts. Bracts last much longer than flowers so your bromeliad will keep looking good for several

, or you just don't have any, treat yourself to some new ones. You can learn more about hellebore varieties here.Either choose two quite different varieties or, if you want to concentrate on a particular characteristic or colour, choose those that display

spring bulbs. I've no idea where they're all going to go.Last year's spring bulb display went a bit wrong. In March my garden was a muddy building site and the daffodils I grew in pots looked a bit out of place. When I planted my containers of alliums