Going potty for a quick-fix solution

If you are tired of looking at an outdoor space or container that has remained empty since the faded summer bedding was removed, the quick fix solution is to plant it up with hardy dwarf plants.

A simple but effective combination comprises three or five young heathers plus a few bulbs with flower buds just about to open. You can find them all potted-up and ready to go at most local plant outlets now.

I find the dwarf narcissi, which are planted in groups throughout the garden, invaluable in this respect. Try ‘Hawera,’ ‘Paper Moon,’ ‘Tete-a Tete,’ ‘Minnow’ and ‘Rip van Winkle.’ They flower well in advance of the taller types, and keep their heads down when a north-westerly blows.

Heathers and assorted bulbs aside, nature has equipped several other dwarf border plants to prosper and flower in defiance of winter weather. Potted hellebores stand out for me in current garden centre displays because their blooms are spot-on for size and diversity. They perform from winter to early spring, starting with the

so-called Christmas rose (Helleborus niger). The cultivar ‘Potter’s Wheel’ has pristine white blooms, some almost three inches in diameter. Over the same period, and in total contrast, the hellebore atrorubens displays deepest purple flowers. These plants all remain below 30 centimetres tall.

Named cultivars of H. orientalis (Lenten rose) in a mixture of white, cream, and green, break this height barrier occasionally in reaching 45 cms.

However, it’s worth persevering with them because they self-sow prolifically giving rise to lots of seedlings. As these cultivars do not reproduce true to form, flowers of the resultant plants can vary in colour.

A note of caution! Hellebores can cause skin irritation and the sap is poisonous when ingested. Be safe, wear gloves when handling!