HAWTHORNS are real stars of the countryside, their billowing blossom brightening the hedgerows and feeding myriad insects, to be followed by rich red berries providing a feast for the birds and contributing to autumn's glorious colour palette.

Hawthorns (Latin name Crategus) also make excellent garden trees - growing to a proper tree shape and having real character but remaining a modest size.

They also have a long season of interest, are very tough and hardy and rarely suffer from pest or disease problems.

Even if you don't want a tree, hawthorn makes an excellent dense, twiggy, fast-growing hedge, ideal for wildlife, and needs far less maintenance than privet or leylandii.

All hawthorns have attractive blossom, but the double-flowered varieties have most impact. 'Paul's Scarlet ' is dark pink, 'Plena' is white ageing to blush pink, and 'Rosea Flore Pleno' is pink.

Another stunner is 'Crimson Cloud' with single deep pink flowers each with a striking white eye. These are all varieties of C. laevigata, which is more compact and more shade tolerant than our native C. monogyna, so ideal for small gardens.

For brilliant autumn colour you can't beat C. persimilis 'Prunifolia' with polished oval leaves that turn to a blaze of red and gold in autumn, accompanied by red berries that hang on into winter.

I must confess an admiration for the viciously-armoured cockspur thorn (C. crus-galli) which has glossy dark leaves, great autumn colour and spines up to 8cm long.

If you're not so keen on thorns, C.orientalis (often sold as C. lacinata) is almost thornless.

It has white flowers followed by large downy orange fruit.

JOBS OF THE WEEK

* Top dress permanent container plantings by removing the top layer of compost and replacing with new compost mixed with slow-release fertiliser

* Make sure seedlings, fruit trees, soft fruit, legumes and new plantings are kept well watered

* Take cuttings from new shoots of pelargonium, chrysanthemum, fuchsia, marguerite, petunias and other tender perennials

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