Bob Brown, one of Britain's most talented nurserymen, chooses nine irresistible plants for late winter - Scilla mischtschenkoana Tubergeniana is just one of them. To find out more, look at the February 2010 issue of Gardens Illustrated.
Head gardener Fergus Garrett chooses the gorgeous red Rosa 'Florence Mary Morse' as a favourite for the June garden - plus 8 other summer picks and where to go to enjoy the best of the season
Rosa 'Florence Mary Morse'
Leading plantsman Graham Rice chooses his favourite sweetpeas that offer scented delight to your garden and hand-picked bouquets
With summer finally in our sights, head gardener Fergus Garrett suggests the gorgeous poppy Papaver commutatum 'Ladybird' for adding depth of colour. Plus other favourite plants choices for May.
Papaver commutatum 'Ladybird'
This year make sure your planting gives something to pollinating insects. Here, gardener Julia Wylie, who specialises in naturalistic planting schemes, designs a Tuscan-inspired flower feast for a container.
Tuscan holiday
Busy, long-lasting and often sweetly scented, the erysimum can brighten your garden, bridging the months from spring through to summer. Read about the legend behind their name and expert Val Bourne's pick of the best to grow
The best wallflowers to grow for spring display
Fergus Garrett, head gardener at Great Dixter, selects his favourite plants for the April garden with spring finally holding sway. Here we highlight the showy forget-me-not Myosotis sylvatica 'Bluesylva'.
A showy forget-me-not, which thankfully has escaped the dwarfing curse of modern plant breeders. Relatively compact compared to the wild species, but still able to extend its arms through neighbours, linking the border community together. Its bright flowers, pierced by a pretty yellow eye, are slightly darker than the norm, and are held in loose helicoid cymes, densely packed to make asea of blue. This abundance has earned it a glowing reputation among gardeners. Best sown in situ or in pots (June or July), pricked out and grown on before transplanting.
Lila Das Gupta reviews The Speedy Vegetable Garden by Mark Diacono and Lia Leendertz and learns that there are plenty of obscure but delicious vegetables she hadn't tried yet.
The Speedy Vegetable Garden
by Mark Diacono and Lia Leendertz
Timber Press, £14.99
ISBN 978-1604693263
Fergus Garrett, head gardener at Great Dixter, selects his favourite plants for the March garden. Here we highlight Pulmonaria 'Diana Clare'.
A first-class clump-forming lungwort with glittering long basal leaves 25cm long and covered in a silver wash. The leaf midrib and leaf edges remain a contrasting green. Produces clusters of shallowly lobed funnel-shaped flowers held in purple brown calyxes on elongated stems, which are decorated with small silver spotted stem leaves. The flowers open rosy purple and change colour to violet and violet blue. The whole plant is covered in bristly hairs. Benefits from a haircut after flowering.
Spring is the perfect time of year to start your lawn-care routine, and here’s the opportunity to win both a mower and scarifier from one of the top lawnmower manufacturers, which will help you keep your lawn in top condition.
Spring is the perfect time of year to start your lawn-care routine, and here’s the opportunity to win both a mower and scarifier from one of the top lawnmower manufacturers, which will help you keep your lawn in top condition.
THE PRIZE
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Your guide to the best courses available in garden design and horticulture
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An extensive guide to the best horticultural specialists.
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Sweeping plains, majestic mountains, stunning vistas and miles of unspoilt coastline...
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Set your New Year budget with help from the right bank account
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If you have ever thought that greenhouses are as alike as peas in a pod, then think again.
