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HOME & GARDEN 17
Rare plants & new gardens DUNCAN

As a trained nurseryman, David However his main line of busi- "Tac" T SELF DRIVE
UPHOLSTERY .'
Greatham, from Freshbrook, has ness will be in designing and
developed tremendous know- constructing new gardens. He
ledge and experience in the has found that people do not have W/C tc4otwA a/i HIRE
propagation of rare plants. In time to create interesting plots, Vehicles for Hire at
November he set up Mill Lane especially when they have just me4I4,an&5ae 81
Gardens to make his skills avail- moved in. He can also maintain Competitive Rates
A
able to householders in West gardens at rented properties or #c 10 Vans - Lutons -Estates
e& ue.
Swindon. for those who are too busy. Cars & Mini Bus
Mde e 272 Ermin Street
Spring Greens &maee. Stratton St. Margaret
Swindon
Tel: 822193
Claire Beaton suggests; some alternatives to Tel: 0793 - 854414
bulbs for the springtime garden Open Daily 9am - 6pm
day or evening Sundays 9am - 1pm
Spring Greens by Claire Beaton comes in a range of 'colours' from
Spring bulbs are all very attrac- greenish-white to deepest plum-
tive but they always seem a grace purple. Some of the paler flowers Mill Lane Gardens
note; something to fill up space will be speckled with purple spots
until the real plants start grow- inside the cupped flower. Its as David Greetham
ing. Usually there are few gar- tough as old boots and will seed Garden Maintainance and Design
dens open for visiting in Febru- about with wild abandon if al-
ary and even if you do travel to lowed to. The only reason gar- Supplier of Varigated & Rare Plants

see them, they have little on dis- den centres charge so much for a 57 Rowton Heath Way Competitive Day Rates

play other than vast sweeps of plant is because it takes about Freshbrook, Swindon Price Work

daffodils, snowdrops or other three years to grow to flowering Tel: 875521 Contract Work Undertaken
early spring bulbs. In pleasing size.
contrast there are the fresh, seem- Euphorbias are less leathery in
ingly indestructible delights of appearance with each stem For a high standard
the Euphorbia and Hellebore plumed with soft strap-shaped Seuce of work
families. leaves. In some varieties like E. with references available
These are both families of her- wulfenii and E. characias these are
baceous perennials; plants that grey and can suffer in winter Painter and Decorator phone now
grow in a bushy clump, sprout- frosts. The green types are more Tel: Swindon 870515 for a FREE estimate.
ing fresh from the base each year. robust. Earliest of all is E. poly-
Most plants of this sort die down chroma which makes a satisfying
each autumn as that year's growth clump of new green in the border
is killed by the shorter, colder in late February, early March. It G. Steve s (Electrical)
days of winter. However, there suddenly appears in the border
are plants in this category that are in the manner of a posy pulled by Electrical Contractor & Engineer
evergreen; a clump grows one a magician out of a top hats. The
year, over-winters and produces small green bun of over-winter- Domestic, Commercial
flowers the following spring. ing stems suddenly expands and & Industrial Installations
Euphorbias and Hellebores are each stem is tipped with a bunch
impressive examples of this type of bright acid-yellow 'flowers'; a Fire Alarm & Intruder Alarm Installations
of plant. conjuring trick identical to that 24 hour, 7 day a week call out service
Hellebore niger is the most performed by the Christmas poin-
commonly known example of the settia, adapting leaves to provide
Hellebore family, being the a bright display. -No job too big .No job too small
Christmas rose frequently pic- Some may argue that the crisp -Quality work .Guaranteed
tured on Christmas cards. I have yellow, fresh green and plum
found it the mostdifficultto grow. purple that these plants use to -Competitive rates
Like lily-of-the-valley, it flour- decorate their evergreen foliage
ishes when and where it decides can hardly be described as col- Tel: Swindon 870948
it is suited and will not be per- ours at all. However, there can be
suaded to settle by assiduous no dispute that the form of the
attention from the gardener. leaves and flowers is beautiful
Easier relatives are H. corsicus and and with a few years growth they
H. orientalis. The first has apple- form solid clumps of flourishing
green, cupped flowers in a bunch green that need no apology for
at the end of each stem that first the contribution they make to
open in February and will last your garden's spring flowing. I
until they shed seed in June. The N.B. If you plan to take advan- I
leathery, mid-green leaves each tage of seedling summer bed- I
have three saw-edged leaflets and cling offered by some seed com- I
form a hardy evergreen clump panies remember that orders I
about 2ft by 2ft for most of the have to be sent before the end of I
year. The flowers and foliage February. I
will be damaged in the hardest N.B.B. The 'Yellow Book' of EASY PARKING -COLLECTION/DELIVERY SERVICE
winter frosts but most years they gardens open to the public in I MON-FRI. 8am-6pm; SAT. 8am-5pm
give a good display. England and Wales, mostly on I gas' Unit 9, Marlborough Road Industrial Estate,
Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire SN4 8AX
H. orientalis is known as the Sundays, should by on sale in I '•llt. Tel: Swindon 854821
Lenten Rose, is a little smaller February. Most of the proceeds
- _ _ _ - _ - - _ _ _ a... •• • • 1
and a little later in flowering, but are given to charities.