Winter retreat

Toby decides which plants to ‘tuck up’ for winter so they are primed for growth in spring next year

- Toby

MAYBE it’s the warming climate, or perhaps the plants in my garden are so tightly packed that, like penguins incubating eggs on an ice sheet, they shrug off the cold? All I know is that winter’s icy grip seems to arrive later every year.

The range of flowers still clinging on is amazing, and a rough headcount includes a selection of salvias, orange bidens, Mexican sunflowers and even a few of the dahlias. I can’t pretend any look good enough to win prizes, but if there were a late-November flower show (and no other competitors turned up) then I could be in with a shout!