Horseradish is one of the many culinary herbs brought to Britain by the Romans. It was one of the bitter herbs eaten by Jews at Passover to remind them of the hard times suffered under Pharaoh.Traditionally, Horseradish has been used to dispel evil f...

These lovely Wild Hyacinths are in flower at this time of year. This hardy plant comes back year after year and will gently spread and behave much like Bluebells. Bees love the flowers and they're largely untroubled by slugs and snails. Their sturdy ...

Pokeweed is rarely seen in UK gardens but it's a seriously underrated plant for a large space.Originating in Florida, Phytolacca americana is a robust and vigorous plant with long spikes of small, green-white flowers from May until autumn, followed b...

Meadowsweet is one of the strewing herbs, which were put on the stone floors of houses so that the scent emitted when trodden on would cheer the heart. It would also mask the more unpleasant scent which may be present. It was also strewn on church fl...

Dracocephalum argunense 'Fuji Blue' is a beautiful blue-flowering alpine for the rockery, path edge or container. In summer it's covered in masses of tubular, deep violet-blue flowers with a lighter margin, and they are an excellent source of nectar ...

The Sugar Plant, Stevia rebaudiana, is now widely used in the food and drink industry as a sugar substitute. It has been grown for centuries in South America for its naturally sweet leaves. Said to have up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar.This att...

Purple Four-Leaved Clover. Grow this and be forever lucky.... perhaps! Purple leaves are edged with fresh green and white flowers emerge from May to September. This hardy perennial is easy to grow and looks great in mixed containers. It can...

The perennial Asters, which include Michaelmas Daisies, are essential to prolong the flowering season of most gardens from late summer well into autumn. If your border looks really good early in the season and then tired and dull towards the end...

Calceolaria biflora is a remarkable hardy perennial alpine, not often seen, with very unusual yellow flowers with dark brown spots in the throat. Each hollow flower looks like a pouch, or slipper, and is very memorable. A real talking point. Per...

Euryops pectinatus is an evergreen shrubby perennial with grey-green foliage and masses of yellow daisy shaped flowers from early summer to mid-autumn.It likes a sunny, open situation in well-drained soil but is also very happy in a container, which ...