CONIFER REVIVAL

It’s probably a bit mean to talk about gnomes and conifers in the same breath, after all, there’s only so much kitsch one can take. But conifers at least stand a chance of being stylish whereas gnomes – not really.

If you’re looking for conifers, you’ll probably find them in a corner of the garden centre behind a sign saying “out of fashion plants from the ‘70s”. But don’t write them off. They were stars at the last couple of Chelsea Flower Shows.

There’s a conifer for just about every purpose – miniatures, groundcovers, shrubs, trees, hedges and shelter belts. And the dwarf varieties are becoming quite sought after because they can give a small garden impact.

I’m keen to try one called Picea Baby Blue. It’s a dwarf form of the Colorado Blue Spruce with the classic pyramid shape and beautiful blue-grey colour. It promises not to grow any bigger than three metres tall and it will take 10 years to get there. I’m going to try growing it in a barrel so it can be this year’s Christmas tree.

Another one I like is Chamaecyparis Obtusa Nana, which has layers of fresh, bright green foliage and a tidy, domed habit, useful for adding both structure and texture to a tight space. Plant it in sun and welldrained, deep acid soil and you’ll find it’s tough as, and it’ll only grow around 60cm x 60cm.

And no, it’s not a Nana’s plant. “Nana” means dwarf in Latin. You can have one whatever your age!