Light Up Your Life

Peter Dowdall says an Amelanchier, or Snowy Mespilus, in full flower is like a light bulb in the spring garden.With space in most gardens being at a premium and with so many thousands of plants available to choose from, how in the world can you narrow it down so that a plant ends up with a position in your garden. Every plant should work hard to warrant a place, they should, where possible, have more than one season of interest. There are some smaller species that cannot be left out even though their period of interest may be oh-so-fleeting, such as many of the spring bulbs like snowdrops and Crocus. The small tree Amelanchier lamarckii for me steals the show when it comes to spring flowering specimens. There are simply none to beat it with its masses of airy white flowers. An Amelanchier, or Snowy Mespilus to give it its common name in full flower is like a light bulb in the spring garden and with the sun still low in the sky at this time of year the effect of the light hitting it at certain times can be quite spectacular.

It's less well known than its more popular friends namely, the flowering Cherry Blossoms and Crab Apples. Its flowering period is quite short, only staying in bloom for a few weeks and at its stunning best for maybe a week at best. Now if you have acres of space and have the luxury of being able to use plants that have a very short period of interest then that is great but many gardens are getting smaller and smaller, indeed many houses that were built during the reign of the Celtic Tiger have just the veritable 'postage stamp' outside for you to create your outdoor room. In gardens like these there really only is space for one or maybe two trees and choosing the correct tree is possibly the most important decision you will make for your garden. I'm tempted to say that even though it is not in bloom for long Amelanchier is worth its position in the garden just for that few weeks but I won't. No it's a worthy choice for any garden because not only is it a spring beauty but it also gives the most stunning display of autumn colour later in the year coming alive with seasonal leaf colours of orange and yellows. There are of course some plants however for which I will break my own rules. These are plants that are a 'must have' in the garden even though they may only come into their own for a very short period. Think of Magnolia stellata which is just starting into bloom about now but these blooms will be gone before you know it, think too of Dierama, the Angels Fishing Rod which produces beautiful arching stems of pink and purple flowers which hang from these fishing rod stems like thimbles but really only looks at its best for a short few weeks and for the rest of the year it is an unkempt if not downright ugly looking grass-like clump. Neither of these plants will give a stunning display in a second season of the year but they are still first on my list when I am creating a new garden.

How you use them is all important. Don't give them pride of place, in other words not out in the centre of your lawn area as a prize specimen, nor next to your front door, no for these areas you really do need something which has more longevity. For plants like the two mentioned position them with something lower in front of them which will have more year round interest. Evergreen Azaleas or Hebes planted in a group in front of the Dierama will be tall enough to obscure the untidy grassy clump but low enough to allow one to admire the beautiful flowers when they are produced. Try planting some Libertia Taupo Blaze in front of the Magnolia stellata. The Libertia with its dramatic wine/red spiky foliage and white flowers in the summer will attract your attention all year round and you won't notice the dull green shrub behind. However when the Star Magnolia comes into bloom it will scream at you for attention demanding that you admire its beautiful simple white flowers but when they are gone you still have the colour and interest of the Libertia to the front. Using plants together in this way is how you get the best out of your garden.WORK FOR THE WEEK Now is a great time to get kids going in the garden. If you can develop an interest now then you will be providing them with a hobby that will last a lifetime and will bring them such joy and value in the years to come. Invest in something easy and quick like a packet of nastursium or sunflower seeds. The seeds are big enough for kids to handle, and more importantly, once you put them in some compost in a seed tray they will germinate quickly. The plants will grow nearly in front of their eyes and the kids will be enjoying flowers later this summer.