Simon Says … Five of the best plants for winter colour

January can be such a grey and dreary month (no wonder we get the January blues!) but even if the skies seem to be nothing but grey, there is another way you can brighten up your day. Whilst we get used to accepting that our gardens have to be blank patches of mud at this time of year - this really isn’t the case. There are beautiful, vibrant plants that can fill your garden with flashes of colour even in the middle of winter. Here are our top five favourites.

#1. Hellebores.

These are nicknamed ‘Christmas roses’ and they really are such a beautiful, romantic addition to any garden.

#2. Skimmia

These are beautiful evergreen plants, that we can’t recommend highly enough. They are perfect for year-round interest, with deep green foliage, sweet white flowers, and this self-fertile reevesiana variety even has berries!

#3. Winter Jasmine. On a cold grey day, these sunshine coloured flowers are bound to brighten up your day!

#4. Winter Box. A scent sensation that’s always a surprise from such small, sweet flowers.

#5. Callicarpa. Beautiful and unusual, these stark stems have beautiful purple berries.