THE WEATHER -

A mild but wet start to the new year, but it was all change by the 4th, when brighter, but much colder weather moved in, bringing a light covering of snow. Very cold but bright and sunny for the next 4 days (wot, no rain??), with a sharp frost at night. On the 8th, the weather turned warmer, bringing snow showers. The snow lingered on the ground until the 13th, when the thaw finally set in, and the weather became milder once more. By the 14th, all the snow had gone, and frozen ponds and pots thawed out at last. A very mild spell of weather followed, with a mixture of sunshine and showers, in fact, January 26th was the warmest one since records began! By the 28th though, it was back to normal with a biting north wind, making it feel very cold indeed, The 30th brought snow showers in the morning, followed by glorious sunshine for the rest of the day, still with the strong north wind though, so still VERY cold! Maximum temperature 14°C (58°F), minimum temperature minus 4°C (26°F).

Bamboos are one of my favourite types of plant, because they have such presence in the garden. They range from quite short growing, to real giants. I have many of them in the garden, and the picture shows one which is especially interesting at this time of year. This is Sasa veitchii, a low-growing evergreen bamboo. It looks like it is variegated, with pale margins around the leaves, but in fact, the leaf margins actually die back in the winter, giving the impression of variegated leaves (new leaves in the spring are plain green, however). This plant is as tough as old boots, and is rather rampant, so it needs to be sited carefully! I have mine growing on the slope between level 4 and level 5 of the garden, which is in quite deep shade in the summer so nothing much will grow there, but it doesn't deter this fellow! It was even trampled flat a few years ago by thieves who broke into the garden and stole my garden bench which was just in front of this bamboo. They trampled straight over it whilst dragging the bench through the clump to remove it from the garden. Undeterred, the plant recovered remarkably quickly, and was as good as new a couple of months later.

Another grass besides the bamboo which is still interesting at this time of the year is Miscanthus. I have several types of these, because they have lovely foliage, and more importantly, their flower heads are so lovely, appearing in autumn and lasting all through the winter when their foliage has died down. They are very pretty, and some are quite white and silvery, whilst others are bronzy coloured. They can be cut and used in dried arrangements very effectively. The pictures above show two different varieties. The one on the left is Miscanthus 'Yakushima', and the one on the right is a mystery! The plant was sold to me by mail order as Panicum virgatum 'Warrior'. The plant was only small when it arrived, but I had my doubts from the look of the leaves. Now that it has grown and flowered, it is obviously not a Panicum, but a Miscanthus - though which one I will never know.......

Skimmia japonica 'Rubella' must be one of the most popular plants sold in garden centres all over the country at this time of the year. However, just because it is common doesn't mean that it isn't a super plant! I love the deep red flower buds against the deep green glossy leaves. It really brightens things up when the weather is cold and gloomy, as it so often is in January. It looks good in a pot, too. It needs lime-free soil, so unless you can give it the conditions it likes, then potting is the only option, as the leaves turn a sickly-looking yellow at the merest hint of lime!

A shrub or small tree which has great interest at this time of the year is the Contorted Hazel, Corylus avellana 'Contorta'. Its branches twist and turn in all directions, and when the leaves are gone during the winter, these show up to great effect. My plant is really a small tree now, with a very thick multi-stemmed trunk. It produces both male catkins and female flowers (tiny magenta-pink tufts at intervals along the branches) on the same plant (botanically known as monoecious), and these are followed in autumn by a good crop of hazel nuts, which the squirrels always get to first! The picture shows the branches outlined against a lovely clear blue sky on January 15th, and you can clearly see the catkins starting to form.

I love to look out of the window and watch the numerous visitors to the bird table, although not all of them are avian! Starlings are frequent visitors, always squabbling and chasing off smaller birds. Although they are very common birds, they are really quite beautiful when you look closely at them. They have beautifully irridescent blue-black feathers, which are speckled with white, and a long wicked-looking beak! I wouldn't want one of these to have a go at me!

Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna is one of those plants which you wouldn't look twice at normally, except perhaps to admire its long pointed shiny evergreen leaves. However, from around December until February, sometimes longer, it surprises you with tufts of lovely flowers which are creamy coloured, flushed maroon, and have the most heavenly scent. Although my plant is only around 2 feet tall, it is covered in flowers, and the scent floats deliciously on the breeze. If, like me, you have the plant somewhere where it is partially hidden, it's often a mystery where the beautiful scent is coming from! Definitely a must-have plant for the winter garden!

That's all for this month...... Happy Gardening!!

Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Crow, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Greenfinch, House Sparrow, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Robin, Rook, Seagull, Starling, Thrush, Tree Sparrow, Wood Pigeon, Wren.