Top ten plants for April gardens

This early, spring-flowering climber is the ideal choice for a north or east facing position in the garden. It’s covered in dainty mid-blue nodding, bell-shape flowers between April and May followed by fluffy seed-heads. The great thing about this type of clematis is that pruning is very straight forward. There’s no need to prune at all unless you want to restrict its spread in which case just cut back to the length required immediately after flowering and that’s all there is to it.

• Flowers in spring
• Fully hardy
• Grows to 3m tall
• Moist but well-drained soil
• Full sun or partial shade
• Exposed or sheltered

There is nothing quite like the sight of the first Pulsatilla flower in the garden. It has stunning, deep wine red/maroon cup-shape flowers followed by ferny foliage appearing at the base of its stem. Once established, they dislike being moved and can best be appreciated grown in an alpine trough or front of a border.

• Flowers in spring
• Hardy
• Grows to 20cm tall
• Well-drained soil
• Full sun
• Exposed or sheltered

Next is sweet woodruff. The slightly scented pretty, white flowers of this carpet spreading perennial look particularly good in a shady part of the garden. They make great ground cover and are a great addition to wildlife gardens where pollinators can enjoy the blooms.

• Flowers in spring
• Fully hardy
• Grows to 30cm tall
• Moist but well-drained soil
• Partial shade
• Sheltered

These dark green leaved evergreen plants are ideal for a dry, shady part of the garden where many other plants fail to grow well.  At this time of the year, they produce tall spikes of yellow green flowers. It’s best to wear gloves when handling, because some people are allergic to the distinctive milky sap produced from broken stems.

• Flowers in spring
• Fully hardy
• Grows to 60cm tall
• Moist but well-drained or well-drained soil
• Full shade, partial shade or full sun
• Exposed or sheltered

This is a very handsome looking, rounded evergreen shrub, ideal for gardens with acidic soil. The new leaves start off a wonderful burnt orange/red colour, gradually changing to pink, cream and green as they mature. At this time of the year, the plant produces pretty, white flowers and looks good planted in a woodland area.

• Flowers in spring
• Hardy
• Grows to 4m tall
• Moist but well-drained acidic soil
• Full sun or partial shade
• Sheltered

Nandina are easy to care for, well behaved evergreen shrubs with many seasons of interest, which also have a lovely arching habit. The leaves have a year-round red tint, deepening to a ruby red in autumn. After a long hot summer, they sometimes produce white flowers followed by bright red berries. However, do be careful if you have cats, as the berries are said to be toxic to them, although much beloved by birds.

• Flowers in spring
• Hardy
• Grows to 2m tall
• Moist, but well-drained, slightly acidic soil
• Full sun
• Sheltered

Although these striking looking plants are often seen growing in shade, if you have moisture retentive soil, they will also happily grow in full sun. The sun then lights up their distinctive silver leaves. Also, an added bonus at this time of the year are the sprays of pretty soft-blue flowers produced for many weeks.

• Flowers in spring
• Fully hardy
• Grows to 60cm tall
• Moist but well-drained soil
• Full shade or partial shade
• Sheltered

Deutzias are pretty, spring flowering shrubs with fascinating flowers, ideal for adding late spring, early summer colour. This compact variety is covered in purple-pink bud, opening to delightful pink and white star-shaped flowers, loved by pollinating insects. Easily kept in shape by pruning immediately after flowering, it’s also ideal for growing in containers.

• Flowers in spring
• Hardy
• Grows to 1.20m tall
• Moist but well-drained soil
• Full sun or partial shade
• Exposed or sheltered

Amelanchier are beautiful small trees, with light and airy branch structure, making it ideal for small gardens. At this time of year, a froth of dainty white, tinged pink flowers appear just as the coppery pink new leaves start to unfold. It will produce edible berries, but you’ll need to be quick as the birds absolutely love them.

• Flowers in spring
• Hardy
• Grows to 4m tall
• Moist, but well drained, acidic soil
• Full sun or partial shade
• Exposed or sheltered