Plant this If you like a furry plant, you’ll love black pussy willow, Salix gracilistyla ‘Melanostachys’. Watch for the shaggy black catkins emerging from burnished red stems this month. It needs full sun and will reach 3m x 3m, but prune hard in late March every three years to keep it within bounds.
Visit this If you can’t escape to Thailand, Kew Gardens in London offers the next best thing: a Thai-themed orchid festival. Explore the flower-filled Princess of Wales Conservatory, and learn about the significance of orchids in Thai medicine, culture and food. Until March 11; details at kew.org.
Cut this Autumn-fruiting raspberries are embarrassingly easy to grow, but to get a good harvest cut all canes to the ground now; winkle out any stems that have gone out of bounds. ‘Autumn Bliss’ and the compact ‘Lowberry Little Red Princess’ are good varieties.
