The English Garden – September 2019

SEPTEMBER 2019 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 67

TOP 10 PLANTS

WORDS

LOUISE CURLEY

IMAGE

ALAMY

T

wilight plants have qualities that are

revealed or enhanced as the sun goes

down, adding an extra dimension

to a garden and allowing you to

make the most of your outdoor

space in the evenings, which takes on a particular

importance if you’re out at work all day.

Night-scented plants release their heady

perfumes, while the cool tones of blues, lilacs,

creams and whites come to the fore as they develop

a special luminescence in low light levels.

Use our top ten favourites around a seating area

and grow some in pots near doors and windows so

that their fragrance drifts indoors too.

Floral Nocturne

As the sun slips from the sky, these stunning blooms reveal scent and luminosity

1 Matthiola longipetala

subsp. bicornis

Night-scented stock is a hardy annual that’s quick

and easy to grow from seed. Although its short,

wiry stems look a tad scruy in daylight when the

flowers are tightly closed, the pale pink, lilac and

ivory blooms unfurl as the light fades, gleaming like

tiny stars and emitting their intoxicating perfume.