Honeysuckle – the sociable climber

No summer border is complete without the sweet scent of honeysuckle. But how do you pick the right one? By Dan Pearson, The Observer.

Honeysuckle, like roses and jasmine, is a plant that will weave romance into a garden. Perhaps it is the subliminal nature of the unseen, the sweet perfume caught on air that adds to the potency, for you will often sense it before you see it, clambering somewhere above your head.

The flowers that so often mark the early summer are having their moment and I will seek them out to bury my nose in them. In terms of perfume, honeysuckle is one of our most exotic natives, but it is a toughie, the seedlings springing up against the odds at the foot of a hedge or the edge of woodland. Their scarlet berries will have provided a welcome feast at the end of the previous summer and the seed will have found its way to the next habitat by a mixture of order and chance. A perfect spot, if you were a honeysuckle seedling, would be in the damp shade of overhanging branches, but with the opportunity of light to reach into as soon as you had your feet down. The combination of cool feet and sunshine to heat up the perfume and ripen fruit is made possible by a suitable host that can take the twine and reach of limbs.

The range of a mature honeysuckle is considerable and it will only settle and relax its reach once the plant has established a domain. This is why, if you have the room, the best way to grow them is to let them loose and enjoy the informality. But you have to choose a compatible host as the reality is that honeysuckle and roses are at odds with each other unless you choose a rose that you have no intention of pruning. Ramblers such as "Wedding Day" or "Rambling Rector" sent up into a tree are ideal, but a climbing rose that needs more regular maintenance will simply become inoperable come the time of untangling the nest.
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Chelsea Plant of The Year: Three lily finalists

Posted by Graham Rice.

'Firebolt' (left) is a new Oriental hybrid lily from Holland. Bred as a cut flower, its sultry deep red flowers are unusual in their rich colouring and are carried in elegant, well-balanced heads on extra strong stems. Set off by orange anthers, each petal is deep red at the edges and a slightly fierier red in the centre.

'Lankon' (centre) is the world's first hybrid between the familiar Easter lily, L. longiflorum from Japan, and the Chinese L. lankongense to become available to gardeners. I wrote it up a few weeks ago here on my RHS New Plants blog. New techniques, and persistence, have led to the creation and availability of this hybrid which combines the vigour and pure white colouring of L. longiflorum with the delicate speckling of L. lankongense.

Finally 'Julie Fowlis' (right), an Oriental lily crossed with a Trumpet lily and the result crossed back to Oriental lily. Named for the Scottish folk singer of whom the Dutch breeder is a big fan, its large very well scented, dark vivid pink flowers are a little darker towards the centre of each petal and towards the base. Especially easy to grow in any rich but well drained soil, although developed as a cut flower lily it will also thrive in the garden.
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The NHS is right – growing your own can help depression

By Tony Gibson. The news that the NHS is piloting an eight-week course in gardening and vegetable growing to help combat depression is very welcome. It's not a new "therapy", its value is simply recognised as many daycare centres have a gardening group, but they tend to focus on flowers and shrubs.

This course includes vegetables and it is the process of growing some of your own food that I believe can have a restorative effect on mental health. Being part of the natural world, sowing, watering, weeding, pruning, harvesting and eating the plants helps to re-establish one's individual connection with our planet, its seasons and rhythms. There is, too, enough light exercise to boost endorphin levels. The important thing about the exercise is that it can be taken at the patient's own pace, without pressure from anyone else. It doesn't matter if it's an allotment or a grow bag and a few pots of herbs on a high rise balcony. It is the interaction that matters.


One of the primary causes of depression is loss of control. Out in the garden, far from the madding crowd, the patient is in control making decisions without interference from others. There is only one relationship and that is of the patient with Mother Nature and her healing life force. This is not a cure all, it is complementary and one of the tools that can be used to support one's own recovery. It won't be suitable for everyone: some just won't want to do it, but for those who do, the potential for discovering a fresh perspective on life is well worth the effort. Yes, it will require effort. This isn't a friendly tablet from your pharmacist which "does it all for you". This is taking an active role in helping yourself get better and that is the key principle.
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