Choice trees and shrubs
ft Caress’ Mahonia ‘So leaves has touchable f yellow and sprays o autumn blooms from
Mahonia eurybracteata ‘Soft Caress’
Until now, mahonias have been stiff and spiky and hardly the sort of thing you’d invite to share your patio. But that changed with the introduction of ‘Soft Caress’, a new mahonia that’s elegant and friendly enough to plant where you relax in the garden! The rich green foliage of this shade-tolerant shrub will make a focal point as a potted plant or in the border, resembling a dwarf bamboo. In autumn and early winter, the upright stems are topped with clusters of yellow flowers that are lightly fragrant and followed by dark purple berries. It pays its way all year and is a must for shady borders, pots and small terrace gardens where other mahonias would be too big or spiny for comfort. Height 1.2m (4ft).
Buddleia ‘Silver Anniversary’
Buddleias are generally tough, needing minimal attention and little irrigation once established. ‘Silver Anniversary’ is rather special and has beautiful silver grey foliage and honey-scented, creamy white flowers. In cold areas iti can be damaged in winter and
may then not flower freely but it’s worth planting for the foliage alone. It likes a warm spot in well-drained soil and thrives against a sunny wall, where it can reach 1.2m (4ft) high. It can be pruned in spring but there are often flower buds that formed in autumn, which have been waiting for spring to open, so no regular hard pruning is necessary. Plant now and it’ll grow rapidly, rewarding you with contrasting foliage and fragrant flowers in summer. Perfect with rosemary, lavender, perovskia and phlomis in a dry border.
Rose ‘Scent from Heaven’
With so many to choose from, buying a new rose can be confusing, but you can rely on the annual Rose of the Year winner – for 2017 it’s ‘Scent from Heaven’. This highly fragrant rose is a new climber, limber, b but only grows about 2m ( 6ft 6in) high, making it perfect for trellis, obelisks, arches and even patio pots. It’s compact and flowers from near the base to the top with glorious, peachy orange blooms that open wide from perfectly formed ‘button hole’ buds. As well as having a rich, fruity fragrance, it’s resistant to mildew and blackspot and should never need spraying. For easy-going beds of colour, look out for the Flower Carpet series of roses too: they’re disease resistant, flower from summer into autumn and need no special treatment – perfect for ground cover and large borders.