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I love springtime. The garden is coming to life after being asleep all winter long. You can almost smell ‘growth’ in the air. Many gardeners love this time of year especially as daffodils, tulips and more fill the air with scent and brighten up the dullest of days with their bright colours.

I do, however, have a handful of favourite spring plants which I encourage you to grow, as I know you’ll not be disappointed by them.

The first is a shrub/tree called Amelanchier lamarckii or the snowy mespilus. During March and April, it’s smothered in small, delicate, star-shaped, white flowers alongside young bronze-coloured leaves that turn green as they age.

In June edible, purple-black berries are formed. Come autumn, the leaves turn fiery shades of orange and red. It’s great for small and large gardens and has an upright, columnar habit.

It’s native to the UK and is therefore beneficial to many native pollinators. It really is a great addition to any garden and has a long period of interest.

My second plant is a stunning, dainty-looking Anemone leveillei or the windflower. It forms a low, soft hairy mound of foliage and then between April and June is topped by sophisticated white anemone flowers, which have a lilac reverse on the petal.

In the centre of each flower are a cluster of deep purple-blue anthers. The perfect plant for full sun or partial shade. It’s a gorgeous perennial with delicate and elegant branching stems

Trying now plants can be a little daunting, but it is definitely worth doing. Sometimes you might have some failures, but you learn from your mistakes (I certainly have).

Also, gardens are continually changing, whether you plant new bedding plants each year or just want to squeeze in another plant (or perhaps two or three). It always amazes me how there is always room for a new plant. You may have to move things around, but eventually, a space frees itself up and a new plant can be added.

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My third favourite spring plant is Cardamine pratensis or lady’s smock or cuckoo flower.

In April and May this low-growing perennial sends up a spray of lilac-pink, purple and white cruciform flowers on upright stems, up to 45cm in height. These look great in shadier areas of the garden, under trees, around the edge of ponds or boggy areas of the garden, as they love wet soil.

They look best when planted in bold drifts in either full or partial shade. Being an herbaceous perennial, it will come back year and year and the displays will get better and better. It spreads gently by rhizomes and rooting leaflets to form colonies.

The other great thing about this gorgeous plant is that the rhizomes and leaflets can be lifted and planted in other areas of the garden.

For a touch of the tropics and a blaze of pink why not try my fourth favourite spring plant, Indigofera himalayensis ‘Silk Road’, otherwise known as pink-flowered indigo. This is a small deciduous shrub with slightly arching branches, which in April and May are laden with short, upright clusters of small, pea-like, pink-purple flowers.

It makes a great container plant in full sun and is fully hardy. So, if you have heavy soils or soil that holds onto water, then planting it into a pot or container will guarantee colourful delights. It only gets to c. 1.5 metres in height.

When it comes to trying something new think about the final height and spread of the plant, what is it going to sit next to and do you want to play off different textures? Perhaps you like the idea of having a whole area in just one colour, or perhaps mixing up plants for a riot of colour.

Whatever you choose, wherever you grow it, you should always say to yourself that you have done the right thing. By selecting a new plant, you are expanding your knowledge about plants in general, their growing conditions and how to care for them.

My final favourite spring plant is Corylopsis pauciflora or buttercup winter hazel. It’s a deciduous shrub which comes to life in March and April when clusters of small bell-like, sweetly-scented, primrose-yellow flowers appear before the leaves on bare stems.

The fabulous sweetly-scented perfume fills the air, so plant it near a front or back door or your favourite seating area. This early-flowering shrub is a welcome sight for early pollinators.

Even if you add just one new spring plant a year, you’ll be amazed at how wonderful you’ll feel and more importantly how stunning your outdoor space will look each time you go or look outside.

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