THE WEATHER -

Generally a very mild month, with little rain and quite a lot of sunshine. However, strong gales were a feature on several occasions, knocking over even very heavy pots. Although parts of the country had very bad weather this month, with lots of snow, I'm pleased to say that we didn't get any at all! Maximum temperature 12°C (54°F), minimum temperature minus 2°C (30°F).

Hamamelis mollis is one shrub which can always be relied upon to produce a wonderful show in the garden throughout the winter months. It is a deciduous shrub or small tree, with green leaves in the growing season. Once the leaves have been shed, however, it produces lovely yellow flowers, flushed maroon in the centre, all along the bare branches. These are also highly scented, and just walking around the garden at this time of year is a sensory pleasure! If you haven't got one of these yet - why not?

I love Hellebores! This particular variety is Helleborus orientalis "Red Lady". It is a very strong plant, with beautiful deep green evergreen foliage. The flowers appear early, and are very large and a deep pink fading to paler pink towards the edge of the flower. The flowers are held on strong dark red stems. This is definitely a variety I wouldn't want to be without.

It is a fact that many winter-flowering plants are highly scented, and this one is no exception. This is the Christmas Box, which rejoices in the unpronouncable botanical name of Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna. It is an evergreen shrub with narrow leathery green leaves and arching stems. It is quite unremarkable for the majority of the time, but at this time of the year it produces the most wonderfully scented white flowers. The scent is very powerful, and one small sprig will scent a whole room.

When flowers are scarce in winter, the garden has to rely on other things to give interest, and the decorative seed heads of many plants fit the bill perfectly! Pictured above are some plants that bear decorative seed heads which last well into the winter and early spring. All can be cut and air-dried for use in arrangements if you want to. On the left are the lovely pale beige button-shaped seed heads of Telekia speciosa (once known as Bupthalmum speciosum, and still listed as such occasionally). This is a striking herbaceous perennial for the back of the border, with large green leaves and tall shaggy yellow daisy-like flowers. The plant is very like Inula magnifica, but the seed heads are much better! In the centre, the seed heads of Miscanthus grass and Dipsacum fullonum (Fuller's Teasel) are silhouetted against a pale winter sky. The Miscanthus is a tall-growing grass with green leaves which exhibit a white vein through the centre. The seed heads are silvery-white in this particular plant, but vary in other varieties, some being pale beige through to bronze. Teasels are tall biennials, forming a rosette of leaves in their first year, and flowering in their second year. The flowers are pale lavender and very attractive to bees and other flying insects. The seed heads are very sharply toothed, and dry well, lasting for many years. Once you have one plant, you're never without it again as it seeds itself around with abandon. The seeds remain viable for many years, and often pop up unexpectedly in newly turned earth. On the right are the stunning seed pods of Cardiocrinum giganteum. These are monocarpic bulbs, i.e. they take many years to flower, but once flowered, they die. However, in the case of Cardiocrinums, there are usually several small offsets around the bulbs which will continue to mature until they too reach flowering size. The flowers tower up to 5 or 6 feet tall when happy, and the seed pods are shiny green when fresh, drying to nut brown before popping open to reveal tightly packed ranks of flat seeds.

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

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

THE SNOWDROP
Anna Laetitia Barbauld