Plant this Blue doesn’t come more dazzling than the Californian lilac (ceanothus). Spring-flowering members of this clan of sun-loving shrubs flourish when trained against a sheltered wall: try the evergreen C. ‘Concha’ or ‘Puget Blue’. The more compact ‘Skylark’ will do well in a mixed border.
Visit this A new garden designed for children opens today at Kew Gardens, London. The space covers the equivalent of 40 tennis courts and includes an aerial walkway around an ancient oak, splash pools fed by water pumps children can control, a giant log scramble and more than 100 mature trees.
Sort this It’s time to start hardening off bedding plants and tender vegetables such as tomatoes and chillies. Gradually give them more spells outside in a sheltered spot, bringing them in at night until risk of frost is past. Pinch out the growing tips of petunias, fuchsias and begonias.
