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Category: Plants

  • Fresh Inspirational Interiors

    Spring is often a key time of year to give a home a fresh look – the human nesting instinct in decorative form. Back in January, our Houseplant and Gift Buyer, Nicky Peto, flew out to Holland to handpick new season merchandise from the Dutch home interiors range (PTMD) that is now in stock here at Coolings. A beautiful collection of pots, glassware, candles, artificial glassware and other accessories that will bring plenty of inspiration to enhance the decoration of your home.

    Art Deco design in golden shades and metal tones are also very much a big trend for the season. Most of the PTMD products are handmade giving a truly unique and individual look as no two are the same. In some cases there may be only fifty of an item in the world. So, we have to be quick to select the best and bring it to Coolings. Indoor plants grouped together in some of the lovely pots and containers look good and make a personal statement. They are also beneficial to our wellbeing as many absorb the chemical elements found in our furnishings and cleaning products we use daily – they clean the air making for a much more healthy environment – every home should have a few houseplants for their beneficial properties.

    Cacti and Succulents are the on-trend house plants of the moment. Their popularity is owed to the fact they are easy to care for and not taking up too much room. They come in so many interesting shapes and forms which makes them a popular choice. Plant a few in a decorative pot or in a glass terrarium. Pots and terrariums planted up look really great grouped together.

    We’ve also added some beautiful pieces and soft furnishings from other carefully selected product ranges which have been exclusively found by us for you.  To show them all off we have displayed all the items in our NEW Inspirational Interiors selection that can be found as you walk out of the shop and down the ramp, turn left and head to the brick building on the left next to Hairy Hounds.  All the items on show are available to purchase.  Open Now!

  • Come Dine With Us – Herbs for the Home

    Herbs can be a chef’s best friend and can really make a difference to a dish.  They are quietly admired as versatile seasonings as well as offering great health benefits.  Now more of us are experimenting with them at home.  Arthurs Head Chef Thomas Williams shares some tasty ideas to use up easy to grow herbs.  Many of the plants featured can be seen growing in our new Market Garden…open now (in the glasshouse accessible from Arthurs Garden)

    Look out for these dishes on our specials board in Arthurs over the coming months or enjoy them at home!

  • Smaller Plants for BIG Impact!

    Spring is the season for alpine plants! In the wild, as the snows of winter melt, these mountain dwellers burst into flower. For those looking to create permanent

    low maintenance garden planters, alpines are the perfect choice. Low growing and tough as old boots they are amongst the most forgiving of plants, especially good for the novice gardener.

    Our three simple tips for success are…

    1. Good drainage
    Alpine plants love free draining soil. We recommend planting in John Innis No. 2 Compost mixed with horticultural grit.

    2. Good light
    Pick a bright spot. In the wild there are no trees on mountain tops so these plants have evolved in the open.

    3. Top dress with gravel
    After planting cover the compost with a 1cm deep layer of gravel or grit. This looks attractive, prevents weeds and mimics natural conditions.

    Show them off in shallow planters
    Alpines look superb when grown in shallow planters. We have a lovely range available in store to choose from.

    Here are a few fantastic choices of alpine plants for you to try…

    Veronica ‘Georgia Blue’
    An amazing little shrubby plant with vivid blue flowers. Even when it is not flowering the evergreen, bronze foliage looks great all year.

    Iberis ‘Whiteout’
    Hardy little plant bearing flat heads of pretty flowers that will provide weeks of spring colour. Looks stunning trailing down a wall or in pots, and provides a beautiful splash of white to lift patches of darker trailing plants such as Aubrieta.

    Sempervivum varieties
    Garden succulents are now hugely fashionable. Plant a container of these and they will require zero attention as they literally look after themselves!

    Mazus ‘Albus’
    Lovely little ‘flat as a pancake’ plant studded with unusual white flowers.

    Erigeron ‘Sea of Blossom’
    An absolute stunner of a plant that will flower non-stop from spring until autumn.

  • Timeless Beauties

    Peony ‘Coral Sunset’
    Exceptionally beautiful, semi-double flowers. This early flowering peony gives spectacular pink/coral colour during May.

    Peony ‘Rome’
    With stunning sugar pink double flowers this free flowering plant is the perfect choice.

    Peony ‘Sarah Bernhardt’
    Named after a French stage actress from the late 19th century. This sweetly scented, pale pink peony will be the star of the show in any garden.

    Peony ‘Immaculee’
    Opening with a pink hue and fading to pure white, ‘Immaculee’ will make a fantastic addition to any sunny spot.

    Peony ‘Festiva Maxima’
    Sam’s pick of the bunch. A very fragrant, fully double peony. Exquisite white blooms with a smattering of crimson flecks appearing from early to midsummer.

    Peony ‘Big Ben’
    Becky’s favourite is the highly scented ‘Big Ben’. By no means a shy plant with its vibrant, deep fuchsia pink, fluffy flowers. Fast becoming a best seller.

     

  • Great Garden Additions!

    Here are seven great garden plants that you may not know and are worth making space for this spring.

    1. Clematis ‘Amber’
    This marvellous spring flowering clematis is so good it was voted RHS Chelsea plant of the year 2016 and is now available to gardeners via Coolings. Its flowers are amber yellow, with light pink tones on the back of the sepals, so if you want a climber with a difference this is well worth trying!

    2. Photinia ‘Carré Rouge’
    An outstanding evergreen garden plant which has smaller leaves than the familiar ‘Red Robin’, a more compact habit and stunning red new growth. Ideal as a single specimen or planted as a neat hedge, this is now a number one selling shrub in France and is just being discovered by gardeners here!

    3. Knautia ‘Melton Pastels’
    Beautiful Scabious-like insect friendly flowers in shades of pink and cerise from June to September, make these lovely hardy perennials deserving of a place in the border!

    4. Spiraea Walberton’s® Plumtastic
    A fantastic introduction for 2019! Stunning, plumb-coloured growth throughout spring is followed by deep cerise flower heads in early summer, then beautiful autumn foliage colour. Growing only 60cm tall it has a neat manageable habit, making this an ideal garden addition!

    5. Acanthus ‘Whitewater’
    This stunning herbaceous perennial is the perfect choice for those looking for an unusual architectural garden feature! Great in sun or shade.

    6. Gypsophila cerastioides
    This charming little ground cover plant from the Himalayan region is very hardy and semievergreen. Studded with attractive white flowers in spring, it is worth discovering!

    7. Lonicera ‘Rhubarb & Custard’®
    This recently introduced honeysuckle is the perfect choice if you want a fragrant, compact climber that is happy in sun or light shade, and which is attractive to beneficial insects. The unique colour is indeed rhubarb and custard!

  • Dazzling Dahlias DO NOT REPUBLISH DUE TO IMAGE COPYRIGHT

    There are 42 species of dahlia, but innumerable hybrids which are commonly grown as garden plants. The diversity in size and form of these popular Mexican flowering bushes make them very appealing, but very hard to record! The different types of dahlia are astounding and mind numbing in their excess, so the easiest way that expert growers keep track is to order the types of dahlia into groups determined by their size and form. We have a fantastic selection of tubers in store now.

    In this article we are going to concentrate on three of the popular shaped – pompon, decorative dinnerplate.

    Planting up
    Dahlias should not be planted outdoors until there’s no danger of frost. Start your dahlias in pots in March/April before transplanting them out into the garden. Giving them a head start means can start picking flowers in mid-July rather than early August. Dahlias deserve a prime location with all day sun in the best soil you can give them. Well-drained soil is essential. If it’s heavy and wet, it will stunt their growth and invite disease and insect problems.

    Watering and Fertilising
    All dahlias are hungry plants that respond well to fertiliser. Start feeding them at planting time by enriching the soil with compost and adding an all-purpose fertiliser such as Vitax Q4. When the plants are a foot tall, begin feeding them twice a month with a liquid all-purpose fertiliser such as Scotts Miracle Gro All Purpose liquid fertiliser.

    Staking
    Dahlias have somewhat brittle stems that can be damaged by heavy wind and rain. With dinnerplates, the weight of the big flower heads can be enough to pull over an entire plant. Unless you’re in a very sheltered location, it’s important to stake the plants early and tie them in as they grow.

    Picking and Deadheading
    The more you pick, the more you will get. Cut your dahlias as soon as they open and before the back petals begin to soften. Try to cut nice, long stems, even when it means removing buds. Over time, this encourages the plant to produce longer stems. Remove spent flowers in the same way, cutting a full stem rather than just nipping off the flower. Spent flowers collect moisture and become a home for pests and disease.

    As well as dahlia tubers we also have a fabulous range of summer flowering bulbs and corms in store now!

    Pompon Dahlias

    There’s something extra special about pompon dahlias,with their exquisite globe-shaped flowers. Pompon dahlias, as their name suggests, have pompon-like flowers – the petals curve inwards to create stunning, intricate blooms up to 5cm across and look as good in a vase as they do in the border. Our top picks are:

    Decorative Dahlias
    Decorative dalias are double dahlias with broad, flat-tipped petals that are sometimes wavy. They have fabulous lush flowers ranging vastly in size from small to giant. They’re dramatic and showy: a spectacular addition to the garden. Decorative dahlias can be formal with flat petals evenly and regularly placed throughout the flowers, or informal with generally flat petals, sometimes slightly rolled at the tips, but with irregular arrangement of formation. If you’re growing them for the vase, choose the formal decorative varieties with their perfectly packed blooms.

    The informal decorative dahlias will look terrific in your borders or containers. All these decorative dahlias are knockouts:

    Dinnerplate Dahlias
    Though every type of dahlia has its own special charm, if you want the most direct route to WOW, you’ll want to grow dinnerplate dahlias.  They’re not an official class of dahlia but ‘dinnerplate’ is a term applied to any variety that produces big flowers measuring at least 8” across. The blossoms may have a classic, decorative form with perfectly cut petals. We love:

  • Winter Flowering Houseplants

    Those of us who spend much of our waking lives thinking about gardens tend to give plants as Christmas presents. Often given to help dispel winter dullness, winter-flowering houseplants offer their best displays when kept in the right conditions. Whether you are the owner of a Poinsettia, Cyclamen or Azalea, providing suitable temperatures, humidity levels and care means you can impress your friends into the New Year with the health of the plant they gave you.

    Practical considerations

    • If possible, choose plants that like the conditions that you have available in your house.
    • Avoid placing plants: in a draught; where there are large fluctuations in temperature (most common if plants are displayed on windowsills); and in a hot spot caused by the central heating (such as above a radiator).
    • Water plants by standing them in a bowl containing a few centimetres (half an inch) of water for five minutes. Remove and allow to drain before putting the pot back in position.Our festive favourites:

     

    1) Azalea – The showy Azalea originates from eastern Asia where it inhabited cool humid mountain forests.

    Top tips:

    • It will last much longer if not subjected to too warm an environment. These lovely plants do need to be kept moist. Never allow the root ball to dry out.
    • Place the container on a pebble tray to maintain humidity.
    • A sunny windowsill is an ideal position for Azaleas during winter.
    • In mid-April, repot using an ericaceous compost and feed with a high-potassium, liquid feed at weekly intervals. Plants can be stood outdoors in a cool, shady site for the summer if kept constantly moist, but must be brought indoors before the first frost of autumn.

     

    2) Cyclamen

    Indoor cyclamen originate from a wild species native to the Middle East. Modern hybrids include those with silver marbled leaves, frilled petals, fragrant blooms and miniatures, and a range of flower colours. Cyclamen will bloom for several months and can flower again in future years.

    Top tips:

    • Buy a plant with plenty of buds showing underneath the foliage. Avoid any plants with drooping or yellow leaves, as they have often been overwatered.
    • Choose a brightly-lit situation, away from direct sunlight and heat sources.
    • Occasional drying out of the compost is less harmful than overwatering.
    • Perfect for a cool, light room or porch.
    • Remove spent flowers by twisting the stems and giving them a sharp pull. This avoids leaving parts of the stems behind, which often rot.
    • After flowering, continue careful watering and feeding until leaves yellow, then reduce watering as the plant becomes dormant for the summer.
    • As new growth appears, replace the top few centimetres (half an inch) of compost in the container with fresh compost and resume regular watering.

    Indoor cyclamen are usually larger and more showy than their outdoor cousins, the hardy cyclamen.

     

    3) Poinsettia

    Poinsettias are cheeryplants that are widely grown indoors over Christmas for their brightly coloured bracts ranging from pale cream bracts through to deep red, the most popular being scarlet. They are often disposed of once they start to fade, but with a little care, you can keep them all year and the bracts will colour up again the following year.

    Top tips:

    • Poinsettias need bright, but filtered light, away from strong sun and draughts. They need a minimum temperature of 13-15°C (55-59°F).
    • Be careful when transporting poinsettias from our shop to your home, as the cold outdoor temperatures can damage the foliage. We would be happy to wrap the plant in paper right around the top of the foliage, or put it in a plastic bag so that it is completely protected, just ask a member of staff at the till point.
    • Water sparingly. As a rule of thumb, only water when the surface of the compost has begun to dry out. The flowering life of plants is extended by humidity, so mist plants regularly.

     

    4) Cymbidium orchid

    Orchids are also a very popular choice for a gift. With their exotic blooms, these stunning plants provide weeks if not months of colour. The most popular orchid is the Phalaenopsis or Moth Orchid, which come in a huge range of colours with various petal patterns. Cymbidium Orchids make a grand statement with their lovely stems of waxy flowers; however they do need quite a bit of space to show them off to their best advantage.

    Cymbidium have highly decorative flower spikes and are one of the least demanding indoor orchids.

    Top tips:

    • Support developing flower spikes with a bamboo cane. Flowers generally last for six to eight weeks. Once the blooms have faded, cut down the flowered stem to the base.
    • Cymbidium prefers cooler growing conditions than some other tender indoor orchids. Provide winter growing temperatures between 10-14°C (50-57°F). Keep the temperatures below 30°C (86°F) in summer to prevent damage to the plants.
    • Do not allow the plant to sit in water. Let the compost dry out a little before the next watering.

    Don’t forget, we offer a complimentary gift wrap service to further enhance your selection.

  • Bountiful Bareback Berries

    Blackberry Rubus ‘Waldo’
    This early, thornless variety is a heavy cropper which produces large, glossy, conical berries.  ‘Waldo’ is a deciduous, upright to arching compact shrub and its attractive fruit is bursting with flavour.  The berries are perfect for putting in tarts, pies, crumble and jam.

    Raspberry Rubus ‘Malling Admiral’
    A late summer raspberry producing large, red fruits with an excellent flavour.  The canes are strong growing and resistant to raspberry root rot disease.  A popular variety producing high yields.  One of the best garden varieties.

    Raspberry Rubus idaeus ‘Tulameen’
    Delicious raspberries, Rubus idaeus are very easy to grow.  From just a few plants you’ll be able to harvest bowlfuls of fruit from midsummer until mid-autumn. They can be eaten straight from the plant, used in jams, summer puddings, coulis and wine, and they also freeze well.  ‘Tulameen’ is also known for attracting bees and other pollinators with its nectar/pollen rich flowers.

    Gooseberry Ribes ‘Captivator’
    ‘Captivator’ is a rounded, deciduous, fruit bearing shrub with green, shallow lobed leaves in summer that turn red in autumn.  White flowers in spring, and purple-pink, sweet fruits ripen from late spring into summer.  This tall, self-fertile variety will give you something to love all year round.  Exceptional quality berries that will come in abundance.

    Loganberry Rubus x Loganobaccus
    Rubus x loganobaccus, the loganberry, is a lovely cross between a raspberry and blackberry.  Berries are slightly longer and more cone-shaped than a raspberry with a juicier and sharper flavour. These plants are sturdy and more disease and frost resistant than many other berry hybrids and usually produce fruit throughout August and September. The large berries should be allowed to darken to a deep purple colour before picking to obtain the best-flavoured fruit.  Undemanding, easy to grow, and continue to fruit for many years. They’re self-fertile and ideal for using in pies, summer puddings and jams.

    For more soft fruit recommendation please click here 

  • Amazing Acer Action

    Acer palmatum ‘Inaba-shidare’ (AGM)
    A tree with small, finely cut, purple-red leaves turning bright crimson in autumn.

    Acer palmatum dissectum
    A summer green arching variety that turns yellow and orange as the year progresses.

    Acer shirasawanum ‘Autumn Moon’
    Peach, pink and flame colours on the same leaf in autumn. Quite stunning but the spring and summer foliage is equally dramatic. Pumpkin-green leaves at first with a second growth spurt in summer in which the leaves develop a pink halo.

    Acer palmatum dissectum ‘Garnet’ (AGM)
    Noted for its outstanding colour and vigour, award-winning ‘Garnet’ is medium sized with large, deeply cut, dissected leaves that turn from purple in the summer to a sensational scarlet in the autumn.  A very popular cascading, mound-shaped shrub that will stand out in the landscape.

    Acer shirasawanum ‘Aureum’ (AGM)
    Deciduous and slow growing with stunning seasonal foliage. The branches of this Acer display rounded pale, buttery-yellow leaves in the spring with tiny crimson flowers. In the summer, the tree bursts into life with bright yellow/lime foliage, before turning golden orange with red margins in the autumn.

    Acer palmatum ‘Orange Dream’ (AGM)
    This award-winning Acer is medium sized with something to offer every season.  Beautiful golden yellow-orange spring growth, a chartreuse for the summer, turning stunning orange gold in the autumn.  As the leaves fall, they expose the graceful outlines of the bright-green bark and twigs for the winter.  As it’s a slow growing deciduous Acer, it’s ideal for small gardens or a large container. It would look great in one of our lime green National Trust Pots (£39.99) with some Kelkay Green Slate Chippings (£5.99 a bag, or 2 for £10) around it.

    Where should I plant them?
    Acers are adaptable plants, but are unhappy in wet or dry conditions and find very alkaline soils difficult to cope with so we recommend planting with an ericaceous compost such as Levington’s Ericaceous Compost (£4.49, 20L bag). Some shade is an advantage for green-leaved or variegated varieties which may be scorched by strong sunlight, but red leaves do need sun to develop their colour to the full. Cool dappled shade with protection from cold north or easterly winds will suit most Acers & if you can’t provide this in the border, you could choose a smaller variety & keep it in a container instead.

    Growing in a pot?
    Acers are great to grow in a pot as a feature.  Select a sturdy pot about twice the size of the one the Acer is already in and carefully consider the position of the pot before you plant.  Place in a sheltered spot out of the wind and in dappled shade to get the best displays of colour from your tree.  Make sure the pot has good drainage holes and stand your pot on feet so that water can escape in winter.  Keep plants well-watered – check that the leaves aren’t preventing the rainfall getting to the compost.

  • New Season Roses 2018/2019

    Let’s start with attractive shrub rose ‘Cherry Bonica’ which bears trusses of cherry red blooms with a silver reverse. Glossy green leaves and excellent disease resistance, this beauty will give you blooms from summer right through to the first frosts.

    Rosa ‘Blessings’ (Hybrid Tea) boasts beautiful double salmon-pink flowers with a slight fragrance, or if you are looking for a climber then try either; ‘Handel’ (Climber/Rambler), ‘Beautiful Sunrise’ (Climbing/Patio) or ‘Good as Gold’ (Climbing/Patio). ‘Handel’ is a popular climbing rose for its distinctive large, double, creamy white flowers with pale crimson edge which is complemented with a light, sweet scent. ‘Beautiful Sunrise’ and ‘Good as Gold’ will fit the bill if you are looking for an orange/golden yellow bloom.

    Hybrid Teas
    Rosa ‘Just Joey’ – Fragrant, fully double, coppery-pink flowers with wavy-margined petals from July to September and sparse, dark-green leaves. This free-flowering bush rose is perfect for an open, sunny border with fertile, moist, well-drained soil. Offering good resistance to disease and rain, the beautiful blooms make excellent cut-flowers.

    Back by popular demand Rosa ‘Ice Cream’ – it’s large, pure white flowers are excellent for cutting. Plus, its spicy cinnamon scent is gorgeous.

    Floribundas
    The rich purple-mauve, semi-double flowers of ‘Blue for You’ will fade to a startling slate blue. It’s very free-flowering and boasts a sweet fragrance with hints of violets. If you are looking for a floribunda with it all try ‘Eyes for You’. Clusters of pale pink, almost white flowers have an attractive mauve-purple blotch in the centres. Growth is compact and very bushy with small and glossy foliage with a good diseases resistance. The blooms also carry a pleasing fragrance! WOW!

    Patio:
    Patio roses do not require too much maintenance and are smaller than the average rose. We have everything from the masses of small, lemon-yellow flowers on Rosa ‘Sweet Memories’ and the deep yellow, repeat flowering blooms on ‘Laura Ford’ to the fragrant, orange glowing blooms of ‘Sweet Magic’.

    David Austin Shrub Roses:
    Introduced at the Chelsea Flower Show in May (2017), the beautiful new English shrub rose from David Austin, Rosa ‘James L. Austin’, has large, deep cerise pink, multi-petalled rosette blooms with a central button eye. The deliciously fruity fragrance resembles a mixture of dark fruits: blackcurrant, blackberry, raspberry and cherry with hints of lemon zest and almond. A repeat flowerer, it flowers prolifically from early summer until the first frosts and the blooms are not affected by bad weather.

    David Austin Climbers:
    We can’t leave out our two favourite English Roses – ‘Constance Spry’ (the original English Rose) and ‘Strawberry Hill’- the original English Rose. Both varieties have lovely, glowing, pure rose-pink flowers with a strong myrrh fragrance.

    ‘The Generous Gardener’ is a rose of delicate charm with beautifully formed flowers, which nod gracefully on the stem.  There is a strong and delicious fragrance with aspects of old rose, musk and myrrh. The leaves are a pale greyish green and they stay on until late into the winter.

    STANDARDS…
    Don’t forget to have a look around our Standard (10L) roses. A few of our favourites include:

    ‘Loving Memory’, ‘Polar Star’, and ‘Just Joey’.

    10L MINI STANDARDS ROSES…
    Our favourites: ‘Flower Power’, ‘Wildfire’, ‘Yellow Patio’

    TIPS FOR SUCCESS WITH ROSES:

    Roses can be expensive plants, but they last for many, many years and are easy to establish if you follow a few simple steps on planting and aftercare.  Click here for tips on planting, pruning and after care.

    To find out more about the language of roses (their colour meanings) please click here

    To find out more about our Nostalgic roses click here.