How to Grow Parsley

Silver birch (Betula pendula) is a deciduous tree with a slender shape and graceful appearance, which has given rise to its lovely name of the ‘lady of the woods’. Silver birch trees look attractive year-round with white bark, spring catkins and yellow autumn leaf colour. The catkins and seeds are popular with wildlife such as bees and birds, while several species of moth lay eggs on birch leaves.

Hardy fuchsias are commonly grown in UK gardens, and it’s no surprise – many flower from June to November and need very little care. Native to Central and South America, most hardy fuchsias survive UK winters (RHS hardiness rating H4), although some may still require protection from the harshest weather (RHS hardiness rating H3 or H2). In milder parts of the UK, hardy fuchsias can grow into a shrub up to 3m in height but in colder regions they may be damaged by frost and require cutting back to the base, from where they regrow in spring.

A great tree for multi-season interest, Lagerstroemia fauriei adds a decorative flourish from summer to winter. The Japanese crepe myrtle, as it is also known, is a deciduous tree with gorgeous fall color. This crepe myrtle also develops beautiful summer blossoms and attractive peeling red and brown bark.

Who would be without a hellebore or two in the dark months of February and early March, when we long for the onset of spring? Their generous, characterful flowers bring colour and hope to the garden when we need it most, and they really don’t need much to keep them happy.

You can take an Englishwoman out of England, but you can’t change a deeply ingrained English garden aesthetic. Pom Shillingford has lived in America for 26 years, but she still yearns for the garden she knew as a child — her grandmother’s beloved Arts & Crafts garden in Hampshire, which she remembers always being filled with seasonal flowers. She and her husband David and their three young children moved from Manhattan to the small town of Salisbury in Connecticut in 2013. ‘I had always loved Manhattan, but suddenly I didn’t love it any more and needed to go back to green fields and the outdoors,’ says Pom.

Cherry blossom on show in a west London garden by Sheila Jack

Perhaps the most beautiful of flowering trees, magnolias are adorned with luxurious, flamboyant flowers in spring and summer. These generous blooms are goblet- or saucer-shaped and a handful or more in size.

Autumn at the garden of St Giles House

Strawflower (Xerochrysum bracteatum) is also known as everlasting flower, immortelle and paper daisy. Strawflower plants have an upright habit and branching flower stems topped with many-petalled blooms to 8cm across. Hardy annuals, strawflowers bloom abundantly from summer into autumn, in shades of red, pink, yellow, orange, purple and white. The naturally dry texture of the blooms makes them an excellent choice as cut flowers to use fresh, or in dried arrangements that will last for years. Strawflower grows quickly and easily from seed and lasts for one growing season only.

Castor bean plants are easy to care for, low maintenance, and they grow very quickly.

Unlock the secret to lush and vibrant foliage with Different Ways to Grow Snake Plants so you can bring life and style to your home.

There’s nothing quite like coming home to your own slice of paradise, such as a pocket of greenery in the backyard. But transforming a drab garden into an oasis is not everyone’s area of expertise and can be costly if it’s attempted without a little know-how.