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and provides winter colour as well as an edible crop.ChardThe native cowslip, Primula veris is ideal for naturalising in wildflower meadows. Its yellow, funnel-shaped flowers contrast with crinkly oval leaves. It grows to a height and spread of 25cm

pursuit of horticultural titbits to amuse readers of this blog. A lot of the island is covered with what is known as Machair - sandy soil, scrubby grass and wild flowers - which, although past its first flush of youth by this time of year, is very lovely

? Or the apple that Paris gave to Aphrodite (which decision eventually led to ten years of Trojan War)? Well, anyway, the apples in question were almost certainly quinces. They have the most beautiful coy pink flowers in spring followed by fruit that are about

animals are transient, they come, they go; but wild plants ... they come, they stay, they get in the way, they interfere, and they compete with the flowers and vegetables we choose to grow. I think this attitude to 'weeds' is grossly unfair, so here

ways. The oldest variety I grow, and the earliest to flower, is 'St Ewe', which I planted directly into my border soil. Now I wouldn't claim my clay soil is ideal for camellias, which enjoy a lime-free and water-retentive soil, but this one has

strong, powerful, fragrance that fills the surrounding air. It's also nice having pure white flowers at this time of year to ring the changes from an abundance of yellow.Standing by my choisya and savouring its scent I'm struck by how much I'm enjoying it

, entwined together: a hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) and a blackthorn (Prunus spinosa). This is a rather wonderful accident of nature, as the 'tree' flowers twice. The blackthorn begins in about March and the hawthorn takes over in May. In the autumn

cm by 170cm. This gives room for your happy (and possibly mildly squiffy) guests to push their chairs back without toppling into a flower bed. Whatever the size of your table, be sure to leave plenty of space around it.As a gardener, you will spend

companies is that most of the varieties come as mixtures. That means a packet contains a kaleidoscope of colours, and you can't tell what colour a plant will be until it actually flowers - fine if you want a flower bed reminiscent of Joseph's Amazing

off. The densest is our tree of Oven's wattle, Acacia pravissima, now a huge impenetrable cushion of yellow flowers dominating the end of the garden. Part of the HFW scheme is a series of garden surveys and I've had more luck with April birds than