Best of the bunch

Viburnum davidii THE beautiful, metallic-looking blue bead-like fruits make this variety of evergreen viburnum worth growing.

They follow flattened heads of white spring flowers, while at other times of year the dramatic dark green leaves provide a brilliant foil for other plants.

Viburnums are reliable and easy to grow, but if you want the blue berries from this type you’ll need to plant both sexes, as it’s only the female forms which produce the berries.

This medium-sized shrub grows to 1.5m (5ft)