John Massey’s Ashwood Nurseries has been breeding superb hellebores for the past 35 years, and they are acknowledged to be the best in the world. It all began because John was looking for winter work

Purple punctuates the planting: here an acer, verbena and some pinky-purple crinum, or swamp lily, stand out

This spring jewel is so wonderful when it pops up in gardens, whether it is planted in borders or in areas of grass – as it is just as happy in both. The foliage will start with a slight purple tone a

So alluring is the scent as it hangs in the cold air that no garden should be without a winter-flowering daphne. Charles Quest-Ritson picks the best

Nothing is quite so cheering after a long dull winter as the vivid floods of crocuses that wash over our parks and gardens in February and March. For David Carver, however, who has set up a small spec

April’s palette turns electric when euphorbias unleash their vivid colours, often outlasting and outshining other spring favourites