I hate it when people say they have put their garden to bed until spring.

The garden never completely shuts down over winter some plants die down and retreat underground until spring, decidious trees loose their leaves and go to sleep until spring. Dead plant heads if left in the garden over winter provide food for birds and shelter for many small insects, also providing architectural interest in the garden.

While all this is going on, other plants in the garden are putting on their show.

The bulbs are coming through and in January we see the yellow of aconites, the white and many varied green marks of the snowdrops.

Snowdrops under the hawthorn trees

Aconites under the pear tree

Also in flower in the garden in January are the yellow flowered Mahonia, the evergreen clematis, “Freckles”,winter jasmine and lots of hellibores. The new flowers come before the leaves on the hellibores so cut last years old leaves off at ground level just before the new flower shoots emerge and you can see them in their full glory.

Mahonia flowers in January

Clematis freckles

Other colours in the garden now are the yellow winter jasmine, the primrose and primula and not forgetting all the shades of green from evergreen bushes and shrubs as well as the ferns.

Ferns in January