These mainly rounded shrubs, wider than they are tall, have handsome leaves showcasing the gorgeous flowers. P. delavayi is upright and vase-shaped. Tree peonies lose their leaves in winter. All the ...

Aphids are sap-sucking true bugs. They range in size from 1 to 7mm (¼in or less) long. Some aphids are known as greenfly or blackfly, but there are species that are yellow, pink, white or mottled.

These spreading deciduous shrubs, ranging from 2.5-5m (8-16ft) in height and spread, produce spider-like, usually yellow (but also orange or red) flowers on the bare branches in late winter. The oval ...

A compact, weeping cultivar to 2m tall and wide. The heart-shaped leaves, to 10cm long, emerge a dark maroon-red maturing to a dark purple colour in summer. The deep lavender-pink flowers appear ...

Lavatera are stress-free, good value plants. Although the shrubby types are not very long-lived, they remain firm favourites with many gardeners for their profuse summer-long flowering. Here we look ...

Many garden euphorbias are a staple of early summer gardens, with their acid yellow, green and bright orange shades amid the fresh foliage of the season. Others perform later in the summer, providing ...

Avoid pruning plums in winter, as it increases the risk of infection by silver leaf disease to which plums and other Prunus species are prone. The best time for pruning is usually spring for young ...

Salad radishes are quick and easy to grow from seed, ready to eat in as little as four weeks. These compact plants can be grown in even the smallest of spaces and are great gap-fillers on the veg plot ...

Tillandsia are evergreen perennials, often epiphytic, forming rosettes of leathery, linear or strap-shaped leaves, and tubular or funnel-shaped flowers which may be 2-ranked in spikes with conspicuous ...

Long, vigorous thorny stems (thornless in a few cases) are covered in large, often richly scented flowers, held singly or in small clusters. Many flower over a long period in summer and autumn, making ...

A generally easy-to-grow cottage garden favourite, with a few species that are best suited to rock and woodland gardens. Columbines bear dainty flowers in a wide colour range in late spring and early ...

Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all ...