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interesting leaves that are shaped a bit like baseball mitts. They are best planted in a warm and sunny site as the flowers only open properly on fine days; in the past week or so when temperatures have reached 10°C or so they have been flaunting themselves

When we think of irises our minds tend to wander towards May and great swathes of big, brassy flowers over sharp-sided, sword-shaped leaves. Either that or drifts of yellow flag iris on the sides of pools and streams. We tend to ignore February. Big

Spring is in the air. Birds are tweeting. Comfortable nests are being flung together. Plants are sprouting. Frogs are croaking lasciviously. Daffodils are flowering away with nothing less than gusto and the gloom of February fades into distant

perfectly suited to the smaller garden. It has pure white star-shaped (hence the name 'stellata' as in 'constellation') flowers. It grows very slowly and will reach only about 1.5m after 10 years: given perfect conditions it will eventually top out at about

and the shape of the petals, which range from the very plain to the extraordinarily ornate like Galanthus nivalis f. pleniflorus.This month is the time when the galanthophiles roam the countryside. They are recognisable by their magnifying glasses

'.Eryngium giganteum - this one I wrote about in the magazine but just wanted to show you what a fine and handsome corpse this plant makes. Still maintaining its shape long into the winter. It also looks great with grasses.

the beginning of the tree planting season and I want to state the case for one particular tree. A tree that, if you want your autumns to always be as sparkly as an Maharanee's tiara is indispensable. Ladies and Gentlemen (drum roll, please)...I give you

of its own? A good question: the answer is here.It will come as no surprise to know that parrotias are part of the same family as witchhazels, which have the same shaggy, sea anemone-shaped flowers. Witchazel flowers can be even more spectacular than

A few weeks ago I wrote about the redesign of part of my garden. It's going well — thank you for asking. One of the plants I mentioned was Nectaroscordum siculum, which I think merits a blog of its own, as it's one of my very favourite plants

of goodness). My favourite plant at this time of year is a magnificent Parthenocissus that covers an old building nearby.I like to go there every few days to watch the leaves change from deep green to pink and yellow and deep dark red. It is a truly