Autumn Colour

It may be nearly the end of the growing season but there is no reason for the autumn garden to lack colour. Albert Camus put his finger on it when he said: ‘Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower’. And foliage is not the only way to bring colour into the autumn garden – fruit and berries will also contribute a fiery blaze.

Even the smallest garden should have at least one plant whose job it is to contribute some autumn drama. Some plants are excellent value and provide interest for more than one season. The Japanese Snowball Bush (Viburnum ‘Mariesii’) is a wonderful diva of the shrub world. It needs to take centre stage in a border but will not only provide pretty lacecap heads of white flowers in late spring but also has an architectural layered structure that looks good throughout the year. It has the added bonus of red-purple autumn foliage that hangs from the branches like decorations.

 

Viburnum 'Mariesii'

Crabapples are also good value, providing spring blossom and autumn colour as well as fruits. Ornamental cherries are another tree that pull the double act of spring blossom and fiery autumn foliage. One of the most popular multi-season interest trees among landscape architects is the serviceberry, Amelanchier x grandiflora ‘Ballerina’ is a reliable variety. It’s not fussy about conditions and has white flowers against bronze young foliage in spring and good autumn colour. Perhaps the most spectacular berries are from our native spindle (Euonumus europaeus) . They are a fantastically garish combo of orange and pink – very seventies!

Crabapples provide year round interest

 Perhaps one of the most popular trees for autumn colour is the Japanese Maple (Acer palmaturm or Acer japonicum). It is a little fussy about position, though. Make sure it has a sheltered position, out of strong sunlight. Acer p. ‘’Osakazuki’ has particularly fiery autumn colour and Acer p. ‘Sango Kaku’ has the added bonus of red stems for winter drama.

Keep Japanese Maples out of cold winds

If you have a tiny garden an easy way to create the autumn colour is to use climbers. The classic choices are Boston Ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata) or Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia). Beware, though, they are both quite vigorous – which is why you see them covering entire buildings! Keep them under control to avoid being swamped.

Lastly, don’t restrict yourself to thinking about foliage and berries when it comes to autumn colour in the garden. Cyclamen hederifolium has lovely little flowers that will go on for weeks. It has attractive heart-shaped leaves that make good groundcover throughout the year. You will see its larger cousin sold as a winter bedding plant but this daintier version is completely hardy and will cheer up your autumn for years.

Dainty Cyclamen hederifolium

Bulbs for every Month of the Year

Wednesday September 19^th, 2012

Bulbs really are the gift that keeps on giving. They are very undemanding. Most of them flower for years with practically no maintenance. They come in all shapes and sizes from the stately Mediterranean Bells (Nectaroscordum) to colourful little crocuses. And there is a bulb for nearly every month of the year!

After the winter solstice the first bulbs to emerge from the ground are snowdrops (Galanthus)  and winter aconites (Eranthis). The winter aconite is a cheerful buttercup yellow flower which often appears before the snowdrops. Both of them look charming clustered around the base of tree trunks but thrive practically anywhere.

Snowdrops look great in groups

In February you can look forward to dainty little species Iris which prefer well-drained sunny spots. They are perfect miniature versions of the large irises and a delightful splash of colour while winter is still with us.

Species Iris 'Harmony' and Crocus Tomasinianus

With March comes an avalanche of bulb activity. Easy-going crocuses, particularly suited to lawns, come first followed by the daisy-like flowers of windflowers (Anemone blanda) which have pretty, ferny foliage, unlike many bulbs. Glory of the Snow (Chionodoxa) is rarely seen but very easy to grow with star-shaped white or blue flowers and obliging minimal foliage. March is when the daffodils first appear. We are spoilt for choice with daffodils but one of my early favourites is the little Minnow which has soft, yellow flowers. Clients sometimes tell me they don’t like yellow flowers but daffodils can come in white, cream and a soft cool yellow which is very different from the often disliked strident yellow of some daffodils. Beautiful white daffodils include Thalia and Mount Hood, both of which appear in April. Baby Moon is another April daffodil that is only 15cm high and great for edging the border.

Beautiful white daffodil 'Mt Hood'

Early tulips also appear in April. Tulips tend to tail off after a couple of years and many people recommend replanting every year. I find replanting every two or three years is sufficient. The nice thing about replanting tulips is that you can ring the changes. Tulips are a chance to be bold. They are not around for long so you can play with some vibrant colours to give you a lift at what can be a rainy, grey time of year.  A wonderful deep crimson scarlet is Couleur Cardinal which blazes across the garden in late April. Lily-flowered tulips, flowering in May, are very graceful. I have often used the orange Ballerina and White Triumphator.  May is the traditional month for tulips and a popular favourite is the purple-black Queen of the Night – order early, though, suppliers run out quickly! A black and white mix, use Maureen for the white, can look dramatic. Another rarely seen bulb that flowers from late April through May is the Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum Umbellatum). They are not fussy, liking either sun or partial shade, with white starry flowers.

Tulips 'Purple Prince' and 'Ballerina' looking great with Anemone Blanda and daffodil 'Tete a Tete'

Most gardens run out of bulbs as they enter June but the fun doesn’t have to stop at the end of May. Dutch Iris are incredibly easy-going small bulbs that are easy to plant and provide weeks of beautiful colour. Alliums start in May, for example the popular Purple Sensation, but different cultivars will carry on into July. The flower heads of the larger types, such as Schubertii, persist in the border for months. Alliums are a popular sculpture subject but the genuine article is just as beautiful and much cheaper!

Dutch Iris 'Yellow Queen' planted with Iris 'Purple Sensation'

There is a quiet time in August bulb-wise but in September the cyclamens appear, which are corms strictly speaking. Cyclamen hederifolium, the ivy-leaved cyclamen, flowers from September to November. The attractive silvery foliage makes good groundcover, once it is established.

And then it is nearly time for January and winter aconites!

The wonderful thing about these bulbs is that they can all be planted at the same time in one big push. I don’t plant bulbs too early because if you have a sunny October they can get confused and start too soon. I have had success with bulbs planted as late as December but I wouldn’t recommend it. Frozen or saturated ground is not great for bulb planting. The ideal time is mid-October. For maximum impact plant bulbs in groups of at least twenty. Scatter them on the ground and then plant them where they land for a natural effect.

A great bulb supplier is http://www.gee-tee.co.uk/ . You can only buy in bulk but why would you buy less than ten of these little beauties?

Planting for Pollinators

I always thought planting for bees and butterflies was a bit of an oxymoron. Surely flowers and pollinating insects were made for each other? My suspicions were confirmed recently when I attended a fascinating Flora Locale course. I was informed that flowers and their pollinators did, unsurprisingly, evolve together. Flowers evolved to attract pollinators and the insects evolved to suit the flowers. It should not be possible to plant an insect pollinated flowering plant without attracting its natural pollinating insect.

So what happened? Well, we decided that the flowers generously provided by Mother Nature weren’t good enough for us. We wanted bigger flowers, different colours, more petals and many other changes to the original design. In the process of breeding these ‘improved’ plants we often lost original features that attract pollinators. For example, plants with a double flower do not attract pollinators as the second ring of petals reduces the space for the nectaries at which pollinators like to feed. 

Red Admiral buttefly sipping chive nectar

What’s more we went plant-hunting all over the world and imported plants that cannot be pollinated by our native pollinators. These exotic plants are often bird pollinated, for example the climber campsis (trumpet vine) is pollinated by hummingbirds. These plants can be a no-go area to our native bees and butterflies. Not always, however, it depends on similarity of the flower to our native plants. Lavender, which comes from the Mediterranean, is very popular with our native bees.

So what to plant for our native bees, bumblebees and butterflies? Recent publicity has made us all aware of how critical these insects are to our own welfare. According to the charity Buglife, one out of every three mouthfuls of food depends on pollinators. Luckily, it’s not at all complicated. British wildflowers, or their near relatives, are the best, but not only option. Flowers with similar shapes to wildflowers are just as good, as long as they don’t have double flowers.
 If you want to attract a variety of pollinators a variety of flower shapes and flowering times are important. Bees can appear as early as February so early starters like snowdrops are important. Some flower shapes, such as saucer shaped eg geraniums, daisies, scabious and umbellifers eg cow parsley, appeal to a wide range of pollinators while tubular and lipped flowers, eg foxgloves, are more specialist, appealing to bumblebees. North American perennials such as monarda and rudbeckia are good for extending the season.
  Yellow, purple and pink flowers are attractive to pollinators but they can’t see red, although they sometimes are attracted to ultra-violet markings that we can’t see. Food for all life stages is important. So caterpillars should be catered for as well as butterflies. Plant groups of the same flowering plant, not singles. Bees and butterflies like to have a good feed in one area rather than having to fly long distances to find food. This is also a good rule for planting design in general. Odd numbered groups of at least three have much more impact than single, lonely specimens.

Bee enjoying a snack from the non-native Cosmos flower

Above all – don’t use pesticides! Even if you don’t kill the pollinators immediately they build up a lethal level of toxin over a period of time. The general decline of the honey-bee has been linked to pesticides which depress their immune system so they are susceptible to a mite, as well as habitat destruction.

So creating a garden full of buzzy bees and pretty butterflies is relatively straightforward and very rewarding. After all – it’s gardening as nature intended!

www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Sustainable-gardening/Biodiversity-and-the-gardener

www.butterfly-conservation.org