Our highlights from the autumn plant competition:
Nerines
Nerines are an established autumn favourite due to their showy, long-lasting blooms in pink, white or red. Nerine bowdenii is hardy outside and should be planted in spring for a beautiful late autumn bloom.
Porcelain berry
The magic of this plant is its stunning berries which appear in different shades of blue and purple on the same branch. It is easily grown in medium, well-drained soil in sun or shade – but beware, there’s a reason why porcelain berry is also known as ‘creeper’!
Pampas Grass
This robust evergreen grass forms large tufts of silvery panicles at its top. Pampas Grass is easy to grow in most well-drained fertile soils in full sun.
Common holly
Trademark bright red berries against the dark, glossy leaves give the common holly its show-stopping quality. Holly grows best in well-drained soil in a sunny position.
Western red cedar
This bright, textured evergreen conifer belongs to the Cypress family and is native to the Pacific coast of North America. Western Red Cedar is at home in sun or heavy shade but prefers a well-drained soil.
Profusion
Profusion is a medium-sized deciduous shrub of upright habit which produces large clusters of bright violet berries in autumn. They grow best in fertile, well-drained soil in sun or partial shade.
Enkianthus
Enkianthus is a deciduous shrub with narrow leaves which often turn to brilliant orange and red hues in autumn. It grows in well-drained, humus-rich soil in sun or partial shade and prefers open woodland.
Berkshire rose
Berkshire is a wide-spreading rose with fragrant, semi-double bright pink flowers which bloom through autumn. Grow in full sun with moderately fertile, humus-rich moist but well-drained soil.
Japanese maple
Japanese maple is a small, deciduous tree which grows successfully in compact spaces, producing gorgeous leaves to catch the autumn light. Its growing preference is in slightly acidic, well-drained soil and a shady position.
Blue ice
Blue ice is an evergreen conifer with stunning white-blue foliage in dense sprays. It grows in moist but well-drained soil in full sun, well protected from drying winds.
Pyracantha coccinea
Harlequin is an unusual, variegated form of the common firethorn producing a generous spread of beautiful, harlequin-deep red berries. It is a large, spreading plant which grows best in full sun.
Dahlia
Dahlias bloom from mid-summer through autumn, often only stopping at the first frosts. With a multitude of different varieties, including double forms and vibrant colours, there’s a dahlia out there for everyone. To grow dahlias from seed, fill a pot with seed compost and push the seeds in before covering with a polythene bag. After the ‘true’ leaves have grown (which takes about two weeks), the seedlings will be ready to transplant into individual pots.
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The English Garden’s top new flowering plants to look out for (and order!) in spring 2019 can be found here.
The peony is outrageously beautiful in bloom with the fattest, most scrumptious flowers and lush green foliage. Plant peonies in autumn to establish a good root systems and then enjoy breathtaking flowers from spring to summer. See how to grow peonies. Peonies are perennials that come back every year to take your breath away. In fact, the plants may live longer than you do—some have been known to thrive for at least 100 years. When I
Wisteria blooms vigorously in spring, producing clusters of lilac-color flowers on new growth, which in turn emerges from spurs off the main shoots. When this gorgeous vine finishes flowering (often in June), its time to prune! See more about caring for wisteria, from planting to pruning in our Wisteria Growing Guide. About Wisteria Wisteria is a long-lived vining plant with cascades of blue to purple flowers that look spectacular hang
Plant breeders have had a field day with the genus heuchera. There seems to be no end to the variations in this perennials leaf color: silvery, burgundy, purple-black, chartreuse, salmon and rusty orange. With heuchera, its the foliage that provides the visual excitement, though some varieties also have showy flowers on tall, slender stems.
Scale is a soft-bodied insect that hides beneath a shell-like covering. As the insect feeds on plant juices, it excretes a waxy or wooly substance that forms this protective coating. Scale usually appears as smooth and brown or thick and white bumps on plant stems or leaf surfaces. When a plant is under attack from scale, its leaves gradually yellow and it loses vigor. Severely infested plants may die. Females lay eggs beneath the protective shells. Newly hatched scale insects have legs and are