There’s plenty of interest in the garden now and here’s a selection of a few plants in flower and looking great at the moment.

Camellia sasanqua ‘Paradise Pearl’
I spotted this beauty whilst enjoying a visit to Nymans gardens recently. It starts off with soft pink buds that then open to masses of pure white semi double to double flowers with yellow stamens. If you have slightly acidic soil, this is the plant for you.

 

Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’
This deciduous shrub has oval, mid-green leaves and produces small, creamy-white flowers in May and June. But it’s really grown for the brilliant, flame-coloured stems that are revealed when the leaves, which turn orange-yellow in autumn, fall. It’s best in full sun and works particularly well with red or purple-stemmed varieties of dogwood. The upright stems need to be cut back hard in early spring to promote long shoot extensions. 

Cyclamen
This delightful perennial provides colour often when little else is flowering, particularly in late winter or early spring. They are ideal for naturalising under trees, on banks or in a shady border. They make ideal companions for hellebores, snowdrops and other spring-flowering bulbs. All have exquisite flowers and often have quite distinct fragrances, but even when not in flower, the foliage of many of these cyclamen species is outstanding.

Daphne bholua’Jacqueline Postill’
‘Jacqueline Postill’ has clusters of small, highly fragrant purplish-pink and white flowers held in clusters in January and February followed by rounded, purple-black berries. Place it next to a path where its fragrance can be appreciated as the fragrance produced is really uplifting as if wafts through the winter garden

 

Galanthus (Snowdrops)
For welcome assurance that spring is on its way, look no further than snowdrops. Flowering between January and March, snowdrops are one of the first signs of life in gardens after the long winter months. They are surprisingly varied in height, flower size, shape and even colouring. Given a moist soil, they will multiply into drifts and provide plenty of plants to share with fellow gardeners.

Jasminum nudiflorum
Is a medium-sized deciduous shrub with long, arching branches which is widely grown as a wall shrub and does need to be tied into its framework. It bears cheerful yellow flowers on bare stems in winter and early spring which really brighten up a dark, winter day.

 

Phlomis russeliana
This has just finished flowering in my garden. I leave the seed heads on as, during the winter months, they continue to provide structure and look great with a dusting of frost. When in flower It has whorls of hooded, pale yellow flowers which appear at intervals on tall, erect stems.

 

Pyracantha ‘Soleil D’or’
This a tough, hardy evergreen shrub, bearing a profusion of brightly coloured berries at this time of year. During summer, plants produce white blooms which are followed by displays of bright yellow berries, providing food for birds throughout the winter. It is tolerant of a wide range of demanding conditions, including shaded and exposed positions. It grows into a dense thorny evergreen hedge and is perfect for covering boundaries as well as training against a wall.

 Sarcococca confusa
Is a bushy evergreen shrub with sweetly scented, pure white flowers from December to March which are then followed by glossy black berries. It is a perfect shrub for a shady border or woodland garden. To fully appreciate the fabulous, vanilla-like fragrance plant in a moist, well-drained soil close to an entrance or path. I also take cuttings from it whilst in flower to bring into the house where the fragrance is capable of filling a room.

Viburnum × bodnantense ‘Dawn’
This is a fantastic winter-flowering shrub, perfect to place by a pathway in which to enjoy its sweetly scented blooms. You’ll find dense clusters of fragrant, dark pink flowers on bare stems from around November until March.