Bedding out

As I write these words, thick snow blankets my lawn and my Potentilla is badly frosted, but you know, we gardeners are never gloomy for long. We know, as we toast our muffins and stir our cocoa, that now is the time to plan next Summer's garden. Of course, with so many gardening programmes on the television nowadays, its quite easy to produce a colourful display. Almost too easy, for the boring fact is that most of your neighbours will have exactly the same 'riot of colour', using the same species from the local Garden Centre. So why not try something different this year, something that will really excite the admiration and curiosity of your friends? Many unusual plants which have never been mentioned on 'Gardeners' World' can easily be cultivated by doctors and 1 can recommend the following. For a lovely range of exotic blue and purple bedding plants, you can't beat the Haematomata. There are many varieties, ranging in size from the tiny Purpura to the giant Ecchymosis, but they all share a glowing bluish-purple colour which can last for weeks, before gradually fading to a delicate greenish-yellow. The larger varieties do tend to be tender though, until they're fully established, and may need some protection. Another of my favourite bedding plants is the Areola. Most gardeners are familiar with the lovely pink variety, which admittedly can be quite outstanding, but one of the great attractions lor the connoisseur is the wide range ot alternative colours. 1 can't claim to know them all, but I've been most impressed by the coffee-coloured and the dark chocolate variants... I've seen some beauties. The delicate pink blush of Virgo intacta is also well worth searching for, though regrettably it is now becoming something of a rarity. Virgo should be disturbed as little as possible and should preferably be left in a bed of its own. Even then it may need protecting with a polythene sheet. Even more of a rarity nowadays is the Variola, though you might still find it stocked by a few specialists. Very similar, though slightly less spectacular, is the Varicella, which is still very easy to get, and will produce repeated crops of exhilarating shades of rosy pink. II you want something a little more florid and long-lasting, why not try the Rosacea, which starts with a lovely pink Hush and later ?n the season goes on …