Lavandula 'Regal Splendour (PBR)'
French lavender
- Position: full sun
- Soil: moderately fertile, well-drained soil
- Rate of growth: average
- Flowering period: April to May
- Hardiness: borderline hardy (may need winter protection)
From fat round flowerheads, delicate, upright flags emerge like butterfly wings and flutter in the breeze among grey-green aromatic leaves. This French lavender has dark purple flowers and looks wonderful planted en masse in a protected, sunny border where its heady fragrance can be enjoyed. Like most French lavenders, it is earlier flowering than its English cousins, but associates well with them if you want to prolong the season of lavender in your garden. The flower-spikes are also a magnet for bees and other nectar-loving insects.
As it's borderline hardy it is best grown in a container in colder areas of the country and should be over-wintered in a cool greenhouse or conservatory. - Garden care: Cut back the stalks after the flowers have faded to retain a compact shape. Carefully trim back in April, taking care not to cut into old wood.
Penstemon 'Andenken an Friedrich Hahn'
beard tongue (syn. Garnet)
Deep wine red, foxglove-like flowers
£7.99
2 litre pot
within 2-3 days excludes weekends
Convolvulus cneorum
convolvulus
Fabulous silver foliage and white flowers
£9.99
1.5 litre pot
within 2-3 days excludes weekends
Artemisia 'Powis Castle'
wormwood
Silvery, aromatic foliage
£8.99
2 litre pot
within 2-3 days excludes weekends
Anemone × hybrida 'September Charm'
Japanese anemone
Reliable rosy-pink flowers
£7.99
2 litre pot
within 2-3 days excludes weekends
Perovskia 'Blue Spire'
Russian sage
Violet-blue flowers and silvery foliage. Great planted en masse
£9.99
1.5 litre pot
within 2-3 days excludes weekends
Echinacea purpurea 'Kim's Knee High' (PBR)
coneflower
Deep pink blooms on a compact plant
£8.99
1.5 litre pot
available to order from summer 2013
April pruning of trees, shrubs and
climbers
Many shrubs, trees and climbers are showing signs of growth and so it is an ideal time to check them over for winter damage. If you feel they need a little care and attention, here are a few notes to...
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A multitude of rich purple-blue heads, probably the most vibrantly striking purple of any lavender, topped with three evenly-spaced, ruffled flags in the same dark-purple
Val Bourne - Garden Writer