The gardens become more and more colourful as February progresses and, following last month’s mostly mild, wet and windy weather, there will likely be even more colour this month. If you visit the gardens in February, you will be able to enjoy a wide range of exciting winter shrubs and flowers. Many of our plantings can easily be recreated on a smaller scale, and most of the plants we have used are very reliable regardless of soil pH or extremes of weather.

My favourite planting is our newest winter border, which has really matured, and this will be its best year yet. The witch hazel ‘Pallida’ is at its bright sulphur-yellow best, alongside the striking yellow Edgeworthia chrysantha, whose inflorescences will emerge from the silver-grey buds of January. Helleborus ‘Harvington Red’ will also be at its peak, with large, proliferous red flowers that look radiant in the winter sun.

You will be able to enjoy many bright dogwoods within our borders, but it is also worth visiting the tower border with its exotic and architectural planting. This area demonstrates just how diverse winter planting can be when given some shelter. However, our main attraction will be the glorious carpets of snowdrops and crocuses in the arboretum and on the moat banks, forming a blanket of white that encourages us to believe winter is nearly over.

This month, the garden team will be busy clearing and very lightly forking the herbaceous borders, as well as pruning many of our roses and relevant shrubs such as the hydrangeas on the moat banks, smoke bushes and buddlejas. We will also begin cutting all of the lawns. By the end of the month, we will start applying a thick mulch to many of the borders, which is highly beneficial to soil health and structure, as well as helping to retain moisture during the hot summer spells we now regularly experience and are very much looking forward to.

James Cross, Head Gardener