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pot of tiny seedlings by an auricula grower at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. There were around 30 plants crammed into this pot; many of them have blossomed into healthy specimens, which now adorn our garden walls in decorative hanging pots.One of my

Growing helleboresA must-have for the winter garden, hardy hellebores flower from late-winter to early spring. They also make great cut flowers - simply snip off flower heads and float in a shallow bowl of water.There are many varieties of hellebore

what to buy on the basis of what will thrive in your garden, rather than what looks prettiest in the catalogue. It's best to limit yourself to buying just a few varieties in the largest quantities you can afford. Plant for maximum impact, but not too

ditch.I always smile when I see these. They live in the margins of the woodland adjoined to our garden, serving as a reticent link between the wood anemones and the full on fanfare of the bluebells. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Cardamine pratensis

in light shade, you can grow choice woodland species which need exactly these conditions.Find plants to suit your conditions, with Alan's recommendations:Types of shadeMany popular border plants, such as campanula, stachys and golden rod, grow happily

hispanica): a plant that has been muscling its way into our gardens and woodlands. Bluebells are protected and it is illegal to dig them up from the wild although there are various nurseries who grow them for sale. They are best planted around this time

Free and easyFavouring a more laid-back approach to gardening, I love plants that self-seed with abandon. Here are a few of my favourites...Find out how to collect allium seedsSelf-seeders are the opportunists of the plant world. They may

after the snowdrops and before the first primroses, and then virtually disappear under the canopy of more showy summer plants. Sometimes they produce a smaller, second flush of flowers in late summer, which I only notice when gardening or sitting close

larger one, until I realise that what I want in my garden is variety and not lots of the same or similar plants.And so to those that like nothing better than dropping to their knees at this time of year to study the intricate variety of green marking

maple and has long been a stalwart of woodlands and hedges. This picture shows an unbearably ancient specimen, in a hedgerow. It has been laid more times than Xaviera Hollander over the decades; the trunk is extraordinary, both beautiful and slightly