My favourite month of the year, the sun is higher in the sky and the days are not too hot. Every plant is actively growing and loving its life.  

Usually May is the month of the Chelsea Flower Show, but this year it's moving to September. However, for this month I must talk about the unofficial star of Chelsea.

Loveable Lupins
A cottage garden favourite, these soaring perennials come in a wide variety of colours and will draw attention wherever you plant them. 

They are so simple and easy to grow from seed, it seems a shame not to have a go. Plant established plants in sun or part shade in moist but well drained soil. Prefer a sheltered position and may need staking if exposed. 

Vicky’s Top Tip
Keep them well watered during dry periods to stop them getting white fly, which they can be prone to. Protect young plants from hungry slugs and snails.

My greenhouse is crammed full of germinating seeds, after promising my husband I wouldn’t go overboard this year! 

Spring is finally here. One of spring's pleasures and must have plants is the flowering cherry.

Prunus Kiku-Shidare Zakura
The best compact flowering cherry tree. A weeping variety perfect for the smaller garden. Steeply descending branches with clusters of large deep-pink double flowers, followed by bronze foliage which turns crimson and yellow in Autumn

Best planted between October and April, the cherry tree is ​easy to grow and ideal as a specimen tree in the lawn or in the border underplanted with hellebores and spring bulbs.
 
Vicky’s Top Tip
Japanese cherry trees are grafted so it is important to buy your tree from a reputable nursery. Azur Borders and Plants can you help you with this, as we can with all your plant purchases.

I am desperate for Spring to be here. Just when you think winter is over, March can deliver an icy blow of hail and even snow. However, the days are getting longer (hooray!) and by the end of the month BST will here again (double hooray!).

Cheery Cornus Sericea ‘Flaviramea’
Dogwoods bring a dash of cheer to any border through the winter months. The golden-twig dog wood is a medium size shrub producing a blaze of slender greenish-yellow stems, often turning lighter through winter. The ovate green leaves on display in summer turn red and orange in autumn and the plant provides small flat cream flowerheads as well as white berries.

Dogwoods are extremely easy to grow, they will tolerate almost any garden soil and aspect. Perfect for planting now, bareroot plants are still available until the end of the month.

Vicky’s Top Tip
The secret to a good display is annual pruning. Only the young stems carry zingy colour, as they age the more faded and gnarly they become. Prune hard in March.

I remain every hopeful that Spring is on its way, even the smallest flower can bring such delight to a gloomy February day. 

Sumptuously Scented Sarcoccoca Confusa
Also known as Christmas Box, this small hardy evergreen shrub gives off the most deliciously scented winter flowers. It has compact glossy green foliage, with white flowers and attractive black berry-like fruit. Christmas Box is ideal for growing in a pot by the front door. The plant is slow growing to a maximum height of 1.2m.

Easy to grow, Christmas Box plants prefer moist, well drained and humus rich soil. They're perfect planted in light shade under other trees and shrubs. Christmas Box can also be planted together to create a low hedge, as an alternative to common box. Containerised plants are readily available and can be planted now if the ground isn’t frozen.
 
Vicky’s Top Tip
Lightly prune with shears after flowering, to keep in a neat ball shape. 

​I always consider this to be one of the darkest months of the year. The artificial lights of Christmas are down and it is the end of the month before we begin to see the evenings draw out a little and a few early snowdrops or aconites beginning to show.

Hooray for Hellebores
I am not sure what it is about Hellebores which makes them so seductive, part of it maybe they put on a show whilst winter is still in full swing. These hardy perennial plants are not tall and cannot be accused of being flamboyant, but their flowers last for months, eventually fading to green. The range of colours is staggering from pure white to virtually black and in between soft pinks, rich purples, clarets, yellows and greens. 

Easy to grow, Hellebores prefers heavy, neutral to alkaline soil in partial shade. Many will tolerate full sun and most soil conditions but it's best to avoid excessively dry or wet conditions. They can be planted now if the ground isn’t frozen. Alternatively, plant in a pot and transfer to the border later in the spring. 

Vicky’s Top Tips 

• Make sure to mulch annually in autumn.
• Trim off old leaves ready to reveal the beautiful nodding flower heads.  
• In April or May trim off the faded flowers, dig up any seedlings from around the parent plant and plant elsewhere in the garden for further Hellebore delight.