Chloris at The Blooming Garden encourages us garden bloggers to venture out into the garden in all winds and weathers to take pictures of our favourite ten blooms each month. My ten include the inevitable Snowdrops, of which I have the grand total of three varieties,  (Chloris is the one to visit to enjoy a Galanthus feast), the common Nivalis, its double and the third which I think is Galanthus S. Arnott. This is also Hellebore season, with the orientalis adding their charm and colour to the February garden.

I am very impressed with the Hamamelis in the oriental garden, it has been flowering since December.  I do have a degree of admiration for the variegated ‘Laurel’, which at this time of year lightens up the rear of the oriental garden. It was a rescue, ‘no name’, plant when we were living in our previous house. I could not decide where to plant it therefore it remained in a pot until we developed the garden here. I do like to see an underdog succeed!

This is the beginning of the Crocus season, there are more still to flower in the garden. ‘Gypsy Girl’ is I think a bit special with its brown stripes, it is in pots along with an unknown Iris Reticulata. A favourite Iris this time of year is ‘ Katherine Hodgkin’, I have had it in the garden since Carol Klein sang its praises during a lecture at Pershore College.

In the White and Green garden there is a nod to the seventies when we all grew Conifers and Heathers. The Erica Carnea ‘Whitehall’ thrives due to it not requiring ericaceous soil, it sits below the fragrant flowering Winter Honeysuckle.

A special plant for me is the Lunaria Annua ‘Rosemary Verey’, its dark leaves providing a contrast to the snowdrops. I purchased one plant four years ago and have saved seed each year to raise plants for the garden and to sell at our open days. It has also self sown around the garden, coming true each time even though we have two other varieties here. Rosemary Verey was the first garden designer to influence me, from visiting her garden, at Barnsley, Gloucestershire, experiencing the style of planting within the borders and the pottager. Then through her books, with the plan of her Chelsea garden in 1992 inspiring the original layout of what I now call the blue border. (It has changed somewhat since 2005).

While Christmas now seems a while ago the flowering Hippeastrum was a gift to Irene from a friend. We were very impressed with its three blooms.

I think its a varigated Laural .

Hamamelis Moll Pallida (Witch Hazel)

Galanthus ‘Flore Pleno’

Galanthus ’S Arnott’

Iris ‘Katherine Hodgkin’

Crocus ‘Gipsy Girl’

Iris reticulata

Hippeastrum

Hippeastrum

Crocus with a Fuchsia in the old cast iron boiler.

Erica carnea ‘Whitehall’

Lonicera fragrantissima

Helleborus orientalis

Lunaria annua ‘Rosemary Verey’ with Galanthus nivalis

These are my ten favourites for February, please visit Chloris to see what she and other bloggers have chosen. Do you have a favourite February flower?