In 2012 I re-created the North facing front garden, got rid of a very old privet hedge, dug a completely new bed beside my new low wall and railings and have planted things that I hope will manage with light but very little direct sunlight. This Geranium is one of them and I planted two. So far they have been good. They are much more thuggish than the other Geranium, G. 'Brookside' I planted with them and will grow much bigger. They have larger flowers and larger, thicker leaves.

Very pretty, small purple flowers in a compact form with nice, small foliage which goes great colours in Autumn.

My real name is Rosanagh so again, as a sucker for names and because it is very pretty, I bought this. It also turns out to be a real star for a change which is great. It flowers all season, responds to the Chelsea chop if necessary and grows quite tall.

Doesn't really get enough sun but is doing OK and is very pretty though not as good as G. 'Rozanne'.

This still forms a useful and pretty front of border plant in the Pink bed. It is not too vigorous, spreads a little but controllably, and flowers all season, appreciating the Chelsea chop in early Summer.

This is an amazing plant. When I bought it, it was under 1 m tall and spindly so it went into a strong, ceramic, square, medium/large sized pot on the terrace - SW facing. It flourished with no help from me growing to 2m and flowering profusely. In 2010 it broke out of its pot and found its way past the terrace stone slabs into the ground and grew rapidly into a 4m x 3m tree.

Every year I would look at its deep, bright yellow blooms and think 'are you just too vulgar?' but it flowered so early and for such a long season and was interspersed with a fabulous climbing scarlet rose so it was allowed to stay.

However, it has furry leaves and seed pods, the hairs on which are skin and eye irritants and my neighbours with small children did not appreciate these dropping on their side of the fence. It also began to rock severely in winds and had to be pinioned to the trellis with an old chain dog lead. So in 2012 it was felled and dug out of its under terrace home and burnt in my living room over the winter. RIP. The Amelanchier was put into a properly made hole where it used to live and was too boring for words so its place has now been taken by both a Vibernum bodnantense 'Charles Lamont' and an unusual Solanum.

This is a great, low spreading Euphorbia that is acid yellow/green in foliage with yellow flowers in spring. It repeats its foliage through the season and adds vivid colour to the hot bed in spring when other things don't.

Great Euphorbia when in flower (yellow with scarlet/burgundy centres) and also when it's not because it has interesting, multi-coloured foliage too.

Though slow growing it reached 8 metres by the end of 2012. This is a straight one with peeling bark and large, leathery silver green leaves.

Though you see this lovely daisy springing out of steps and cracks like a weed in country houses, it takes a bit to take. I tried in the pond bed (and it failed where I put it but self seeded in the stone cracks around the pond), I've tried unsuccessfuly from seed elsewhere and now I have one in a pot in the hope it will self-seed wherever it thinks best!