Purple patch

Tough, trusty heather packs a pretty punch

BRING a bit of moorland magic into your garden with some eye-catching heather.

Long-lived, low-maintenance and colourful ground cover, it unfairly gets labelled boring.

Heathers are great for greening up dead zones. They are tough as old boots. Many thrive in any soil type and require minimum care.

Winter-flowering varieties of Erica carnea are useful because their fine, needle-like leaves shrug off salt spray ideal for roadside gardens.

Their ground-hugging habit means they work well on hard-to-mow banks. Weave ribbons of white- flowered Springwood White through beds to create a snowy wonderland.

Take advantage of their friendly nature by allowing them to snuggle up close to shrubs and you will benefit from their no-need-to-weed habit.

A retro combo, which plant enthusiasts tolerate more than the classic heather and conifer mix, is yak rhododendrons, bergenia and heathers. Add in a smattering of ornamental grass for a modern touch.

Glow

Give winter borders a permanent autumn glow with the bright orange shoots of Salix alba Britzensis. You can watch them emerge from the leafy golden embers of summer-flowering calluna varieties Con Brio and Firefly.

Erica vagans flowers from late summer to winter, after which they turn an attractive brown. For a more up-to-date colour scheme, partner varieties with ochre-red leaved grass, Uncinia rubra and brown sedge.

To give winter-flowering heathers a new life in spring, underplant with miniature bulbs such as narcissi, crocus, chionodoxa, snowdrops and irises. In the off season, try a cloak of summer-flowering clematis.

Finally, don’t forget their usefulness for decorating the patio.

Day- Glo your doorstep with a colourful pot filled with luminous pink plants such as bud heathers, ornamental cabbages, winter pansies, crocus, fragrant hyacinths and cyclamen coum.

Or you can pack a punch in a big pot with the bushy tree heather Erica arborea Albert’s Gold and bold variegated evergreens.