Winter Scented Plants

I am Vanessa, a Trained Gardener 

from Capel Manor College. 

I love Spring time and need to

feel a connection with the Earth. 

I need to feel free and in touch with nature.

Being from a Gardening family originally

 in Scotland I have so much 

knowledge I want to share with you all. 

I need to feel a connection to living plants and 

what they can bring us in so many ways. 

I love being creative as this is what

a real Gardener is. 

I hope very much you will enjoy my blog. 

Please do hook in and take from 

this all that you need. 

We all need to share in this amazing 

bounty that we have all around us. 

I love to draw the shapes of leaves

and the contours they have. 

Painting and Gardening 

are all the the same. 

A form of Art. We need the 

seasons to give us hope

 and inspiration.

How's about getting up close and 

personal with me and learning step 

by step how to create a 'garden space'

of your own

I really want to share with you the fun 

that any kind of Gardening can bring us 

at any age, any stage of life and whatever

size your plot is. It is really something

that we all aspire to in some shape

or form and sometimes we simply need

that little bit of encouragement and 

guidance to start off. So here goes.

March

It is that time of year when we really 

should be hibernating. 

Instead we are wrapped

up and eating lots of nourishing 

foods to get by. 

But now is the time we need

 to plan the 

season ahead of us.

What can we plant? Where can

 it be planted? In what container 

or position to show it off to its best?

This is very important but 

first of all I am  giving you some 

easy ideas to start you off. 

My first theme is 'scented plants' 

so please  do read on and see 

where I am taking you.

This Vibernum

 

is sweetly scented

 

March/April 

Firstly there is a huge 

range of scented plants available and

so much choice where to buy them. 

We need something to lift our spirits

when the cold hits us.

Scented plants come in all sizes and 

there really is something for everyone.

Vibernum in flower in April

I am going to start with 

medium sized plants. 

One of my favourites

 is called Sarcococca -

Sweet Box. 

It doesn't have 

particularly attractive

leaves, but are similar

 to 'box' which is so often

used in topiary. 

                

Beautiful berries
on Sarcococca in April

It is a winner in my book. 

From December onwards this

 shrub produces

the most amazingly scented tiny flowers, 

which to be honest look quite insignificant.

They sort of appear underneath 

the leaves initially and are hard to get to. 

They are white

spiky looking flowers.

I have a lovely one I planted 

in a large plastic pot 

ages ago and it has given 

lots of winter pleasure.

When I need a pick me up, 

I bend down to smell its  

heavenly scent. 

I'm transported  

to some tropical island. 

It is fabulous.

Have I convinced you that anyone 

at all can grow  and look after one with 

the minimum amount of care?

So you need to buy a healthy 

specimen  from a good

source, plant it up in some 

multi purpose compost,

a little water and give it some love. 

How simple is that?

Give it a go and let me know how you go 

with it. Oh and by the way it is a good idea 

to talk to your plants. They do appreciate it. 

They do bring us a lot of joy in return.

I am also going to talk about Evergreen shrubs 

in this blog as these plants are all evergreen.

What is an evergreen shrub? 

It is really simple,

it is a shrub, which does not loose its leaves 

in winter. 

So for example a conifer is evergreen,  

a bamboo is evergreen. 

Are you with me so far?

Part of my

 

Bamboo hedge

 

Why do we want evergreen shrubs? 

Well it is a plant which

 will give all year 

round colour. 

It will not shed its leaves 

which means there is 

always something 

to look at in the winter months.

It is very important when 

choosing plants

to take this into account. 

I have some lovely

small shrubs I planted

 which are deciduous

so in this part of the winter, 

(November to around March) 

there is nothing to look at other 

than bare branches.

This is in hindsight, an error 

but Gardening is all about 

planning your plot properly. 

So we all learn by our 

mistakes and hopefully it makes

 us better and more 

organised Gardeners.

So the effect of green shrubs around 

us gives a kind of backbone. 

It also is very calming 

to our busy minds. 

This evergreen box shrub

 

 is happy on chalk soil.

 Evergreens will give structure to a Garden 

space. Another example is a hedge of bamboo

which will draw your eye to it and it is pleasing

to look at. 

You can get a soft effect with bamboo; 

it is something that rustles in the breeze. 

It also creates a great screen.

How do you know what plant is best 

for your plot. Well it depends on what

you are trying to achieve.

How much space you really have and 

the type of soil conditions you have 

inherited. 

Yes Gardening is quite involved as you will start to read

more of my blog. 

But worry not I am here to guide you. 

So do ask as many questions as you like. 

We Gardeners have lots of tricks up

our sleeve!

More about that a bit later.

Here are some examples of some 

really easy to grow evergreen shrubs.

Choisya - buds forming April

This is a lovely mid green shrub 

which can be grown

in a good sized pot and is really attractive. 

It can grow quite big but if space is limited

 then a pot it fine.

You can always re pot into something 

bigger later on. 

Why am I telling you this? 

Well in my opinion we really want

 plants that look good as a 

stand alone specimen. 

But we do need plants in groups 

as well. (more on that later on).

 

They need to give a bit of 'character', 

something

 that will stand out. It's colour, 

its shape, its flowers, 

 its scent and is it easy to look after?

Choisya also has small 

white sweetly scented flowers. 

They may take time to appear, 

so as with all Gardening

we need to be patient. 

If you crush the leaves they give 

off a really unusual aroma.

I have one planted in my Garden 

and it took 

some years to really grow to a 

reasonable size

and to produce these beautiful flowers. 

It was infact too overcrowded by 

taller shrubs but 

now has come into its own.

They really are worthwhile. Do please give it a go. 

Plant in a good  

sized nice terracotta pot, big enough

 for the roots to spread in and

plant in multi purpose compost. 

Check the compost details first.

If you have the space plant 

it in the ground. (Soil types are  very 

important so more on that later on).

Daphne odora 

'Aureomarginata'

This is a small evergreen shrub. 

It has a nice round shape. 

It's leaves are glossy green 

with a margin of yellow.

Their flowers are small and 

very fragrant,  flowering around 

mid December. They are a light pink 

and will flower until at least March.

This is one of many species but its 

unusual leaves are attractive as 

well and a lovely contrast to the flowers.

Skimmia

This is an attractive and also 

hardy evergreen shrub. 

It will give colour for most of the year.  

The flowers are kind of bud like for 

some time and found in the middle of the leaves. 

This is very attractive.

They form in Autumn and then finally

 in the spring will open up to 

form scented red flowers.

The flowers are a good contrast 

to the dark green foliage. 

They will flower in around April to May. 

They are quite slow growing.

Some varieties also produce small 

berries after flowering. 

There are 

many varieties and look good in nice 

glazed pots of a contrasting colour.

They really are easy to grow in a pot. 

Perhaps several together to make

a nice display on a doorstep or on a patio.

Small winter flowering plants

Now I want to share with you some delightful 

but small flowering plants.

Hellebores. They are one of my favourite 

flowers in the winter months.

They are small and compact and really 

not that hard to look after. 

More on that a little later on.

Helleborus niger are pure white. 

They are a real winter delight and are 

ever so slightly scented. 

These are usually the earliest 

varieties to flower 

but there are so many to choose 

from and so many real beauties.

 

They will flower from December 

until March, 

so you get a lot of flower 

for your money. They grow to approximately

 30cm upwards in height.

Helleborus Niger

               
  

Hellebore happy planted
 in shade.

 The leaves are intriguing
as they unfold

    

Helleborus x hybrids are stunning. 

Ashwood sunset shades are beautiful.

If you go for hybrids they form a good 'clump' 

of foliage. They will flower late in the winter

and also in spring.

This sounds a bit complicated 

but if you choose an evergreen 

hellebore such as Helleborus 

angustifolius that will be a good buy.

There are also summer 

flowering hellebores - 

go for 

'helleborus hybridus'. 

It will have lovely healthy foliage 

all summer. 

Its flowers will form in late winter.

                                     April

Brand new growth

They do struggle in some soils 

as I discovered so it is a lot easier 

to grow Hellebores in a 

terracotta pot and in the right 

kind of compost.

There are varieties which 

have 'green flowers.' 

They are very pretty in

 their own right.

They like a rich soil and 

perfect drainage.

Keep them sheltered to 

protect them. 

Need lots of light during 

the winter and the spring. 

Some shade needed in the 

summer months.

Violas and Pansies

Some of you may really want even 

smaller plants for your winter display. 

These bring lots of colour in the 

shape of tiny winter flowering 

violas or pansies. 

They are delightful and cheery 

and so cheap

to buy that it is really worth 

a colourful show

of them on your doorstep. 

In a nice colourful 

pot or even in a hanging 

wall bag packed with colour. 

They are all colours, 

deep purple,white and delightful.

 

The winter flowering pansies

 are a lot bigger and in my 

opinion not half as appealing. 

Any good Garden Centre 

will stock them in trays so you 

should find a good selection.

  

These tiny violas loving the sun

 

 

 

 

Cyclamen

I have to say that these are 

one of my all time favourites. 

They really do it for me

 in their neat compactness 

and colour during the 

winter months.

They really are easy to care 

for but do still give them 

love and care and they 

will win you over.

 

I think a small group of them on your 

front doorstep is always welcoming. 

I would go for white, 

deep red and 

perhaps pink. 

I would plant up in 

terracotta pots which 

will give them enough space 

to feel comfortable in. 

Or perhaps all together

 in a colourful glazed pot.

There are so many varieties available 

so have a good look around first.

I personally feel that the small flowered 

cyclamen are the best of the bunch. 

There are much larger plants with

big blowsy flowers and personally

they do nothing for me.

Once you have planted them 

up don't forget to water them. 

Not too much

but enough so the soil is 

no longer dry. 

Keep them watered as 

any plants

in pots will dry out very quickly 

even at this time of the year. 

Shop around, 

be adventurous.

Have dainty red pendulous
 flowers in winter.

Cyclamen, pretty little cyclamen
Don't be shy and hide your
leaves.

     

Cyclamen with beautiful
leaves all year round

The Artist in me wants
to paint them.

Primroses and Primulas

These delightful plants are here to help 

us remember that spring is not so 

far away. They are very easy to care

 for and come in all sorts of colours. 

Primroses tend to be pale yellow and

some are slightly scented. Some 

are a pale pink which is a nice 

alternative such as this one below.

 

Such a delight this self-
seeded primrose.

                        

Love this deep red primrose
which also self-seeded.

 Dainty deep red
small and concise 

Cultivated primulas are 

a lot brighter in colour and to 

me less appealing. 

They are small and compact 

and can make a pretty display 

anywhere you have a little amount 

of space. 

Give it a go.

                                           

Small compact
scented primula

Much less appealing
but pretty colours

 
Spring Primorses in shady
 part of my Garden

New Topic

Containers and Planters

There is a huge array of planters out there. 

What do you choose and how do

you know where to buy from?

There are wooden planters, barrels, 

troughsand so much out there. 

If I tell you what I do perhaps you 

can get some kind

of an idea what is best for 

what type of plant.

This tin pot is a perfect size
planted up with a purple basil.

Two ideal small pots for
any small plants

Found these colourful pots
 in back of potting shed. 

I Love Terracotta pots as it is part

 of me and my

creative side. My European roots. 

That cooked earth colour which

 is so part of the Mediterranean.

See the way the glaze
catches the sunlight.

 I tend to go for less expensive pots which have

a nice shape to them. For example a round small

herb pot with curved edges will be perfect for this. 

Sometimes if they are getting a bit faded I like to 

brighten them up by painting then. I like planters

that are practical as well and pretty. 

But when choosing Terracotta, 

(the lovely 

deed reddish colour), 

it is be best to go for

a good make as there are 

such differences

in quality.

If you buy middle of the range

 pots you should be fine. 

No more than 

£5.00 - 7.00 for a nice

 small plain pot. 

I can give you some places 

to try but have a look at 

good quality Garden Centres 

or Suppliers of good 

pots. 

Also remember that firstly the 

climate in the United Kingdom

is not great for nice things

 so they need to be 

frost proof and a bit 

tougher to cope.

So check what the labels say.  

 

Left pot for hanging
 on a fence

          

Troughs are great as you can place 

them on a window sill or two or

on an old wall, so that when it is time 

to plant up 

with colour you can 

use the wall as a stage and then fill 

with trailing plants. 

But for a good

effect it can look better if you have 

several of them spaced out.

Large trough I mosaiced 

Glazed terracotta
pot with tin pots

Gardening and planting is a bit of an Art. 

I feel if you are going to do

it properly, have some nice looking 

troughs of terracotta or of stoneware

and then plant with colourful and 

cheerful plants that work well to show 

them off. Be artistic, have a go. 

It is not a disaster if it doesn't work just

as you like first time round. 

It is all about experimenting.

It is a bit like clothes. If you 

have a smart outfit

 you need smart shoes to

go with it or it doesn't really work. 

Troughs are more sturdy and 

less likely to break, but do have a 

good look 

around at what is available. 

A nice little set I found
in an antique shop

 

Perfect small seed tray
 and small pots

I love the warm colours
of this pot.

Such a perfect
shine it has.

Pots of colour

Pots of joy

Pots of textured gritty soil

Pots and Pots and Pots

I love all kinds of pots

Sping to me is primroses, 

all shades of yellow.

Look closer at the beautiful 

leaves as they all unfurl.

Cyclamen have such designs 

all over their leaves

This barrel is a handy size
planted up with chives