Brian Minter: Adapting to cooler season means shifting to colourful plants indoors

CARSON DOWNING

Plants with a silvery sheen stand out beautifully against the sea of green that fills most garden beds. In this episode, Danielle, Carol, and their guest will highlight some shimmering shrubs, drought-tolerant perennials, a tiny dwarf conifer, and even an unusual silvery vine with a bit of a back story. Perhaps one of these lovely, luminous plants could be the silver bullet solution to one of your own garden design dilemmas.

These Rainbow Rose Tattoo Meaning and Designs have something for everyone so you can express your unique style!

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Werner Straube

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With their glossy leaves and festive red berries, skimmia are made for Christmas. What’s more, these compact evergreen shrubs are a super choice for small gardens, and they grow well in containers for courtyard or balcony gardeners. If you yearn to gather your own greenery for Christmas decorations, but don’t have room for a holly, a couple of choice skimmias could be just the thing – and because they’re prickle free, making those decorations will be far less painful!

The colours of autumn are so evocative. Russet, ochre and translucent crimson can look magnificent against a clear blue sky – or more importantly they can light up a dull grey day, catching the eye and cheering the heart. It is fascinating to know a little about the science behind the colour change in the second half of the year, as explained by Chris Clennett at Kew: ‘Trees, like most plants, use chlorophyll to photosynthesise…In autumn, trees that lose their leaves for winter go through a process to shut down photosynthesis and reclaim as many valuable chemicals as possible. Chlorophyll is constantly breaking down and being replaced through the summer, but the process slows down in autumn. This reveals all those other chemicals that were hidden by the presence of the dominant green chlorophyll…yellow flavonols, orange carotenoids and red to purple anthocyanins.’

Kritsada Panichgul

While growing plants from seed is less expensive, it does require extra steps when compared to growing plants or starts from your local garden center.

Just as we cherish a day of pampering, your green friends can greatly benefit from special treatments, too! These unique, out-of-the-box Plant Spa Day Routine tips not only boost plant health but also deepen your connection with your leafy companions.

These jade-like succulents, with their thick, glossy leaves, have an uncanny resemblance to the beloved plants from the Crassula ovata genus!