Plants are what makes a garden. They are the one thing that make gardeners do the thing they love. To someone new to gardening who just wants a nice garden, the choice and variety can be bewildering. Here on this page we have tried to give good information to help you out, as well as giving some good ideas on things to do, and what we sell at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester as we have one of the best selections in Leicestershire.

Shrubs | Climbers | Roses | Perennials | Herbs | Alpines | Conifers | Ornamental Trees | Fruit Trees | Soft Fruit | Water Plants | Hedge Plants | Grasses, Ferns & Bamboo | Rhododendrons, Azaleas & Camellias

Shrubs

Here at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester we think buying shrubs can sometimes be a bit confusing, and not knowing which should go where can be a daunting task. To make life a little easier, we have arranged all of our shrubs into suitability sections. Shrubs suitable for Full Sun, Part Shade, Full Shade, Hedging and Evergreens. Within these categories they are then arranged in size order: Ground cover, Compact, Medium and Large sizes. We stock a huge variety, but if we can't get what you are looking for, we will happily suggest alternatives.

GROWTH TYPE	EVENTUAL HEIGHT	USES IN THE GARDEN
Ground Cover	0-50cm (0-20”)	Front of beds/borders, banks, rock gardens, weed suppressant.
Compact	50-100cm (20''-3'3''	Patio containers, raised beds, beds/borders, low hedges.
Medium	100-150cm (3'3''-4'11'')	Middle to back of border, large tubs, specimen shrub, hedging.
Large	150cm (4'11'') and above	Back of border, hedging, large specimen shrub, windbreak.

As with other plant groups, the majority of our shrubs are UK grown, with a large amount coming from Hillier Nurseries in Hampshire, who are a well established nursery with royal appointments, who reliably supply us with excellent quality shrubs and perennials at reasonable prices that we are able to pass on to you.  Other nurseries we buy shrubs from include Lowaters, who specialise in Hebes, producing a wide and colourful range of these easy-care plants, as well as more exotic, collectable shrubs and perennials.  Welland Vale nurseries in nearby Uppingham complete the circle, with a large catalogue of garden favourites. Before choosing your shrubs, it is essential to know what your soil type is.  We have already mentioned light requirements and size, but also important is soil moisture and pH (acidity/alkaline level – check with a PH testing kit).  Most shrubs will grow in a well drained but moisture retentive, neutral soil, but few gardeners are blessed with such conditions! Below, we list some other soil types, together with some examples of shrubs that do well in them.  Whatever your soil type is, we can recommend shrubs for your garden, or provide you with advice on how to improve it.

SOIL TYPE	EXAMPLES OF SUITABLE SHRUBS
DRY SOIL	Rosmarinus, Yucca, Lavender, Senecio, Cistus, Phlomis, Santolina, Hibiscus, Cytisus.
DAMP/WET SOIL	Cornus, Aronia, Amelanchier, Sambucus, Salix, Physocarpus, Viburnum, Spiraea
ACIDIC SOIL (LOW pH LEVEL)	Rhododendron, Azalea, Pieris, Camellia, Leucothoe, Hamamelis, Cornus, Acer, Skimmia,   Magnolia, Hydrangea, Fothergilla, Leptospermum, Amelanchier.
ALKALINE/LIME-RICH SOIL (HIGH pH)	Berberis, Buddleia, Callicarpa, Choisya, Ceanothus, Cistus, Escallonia, Forsythia, Ilex, Kerria, Lavandula, Philadelphus,   Photinia, Pyracantha, Syringa, Vinca.

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Climbers

All of our climbers & wall shrubs are British sourced, we stock a good range from self supporting clematis to wall shrubs to be trained with trellis work. If you come into Glebe Garden Centre Leicester you will find we categorise them into, clematis, climbers and wall shrubs. Within the climbers you will find a full range of Honeysuckles, Jasmines both winter and summer varieties, Ivy, Passion flowers, wisteria and some more unusual plants like Akebia the Chocolate Vine. Wall Shrubs contain plants like solanum, hydrangeas and quince. Clematis come in many shapes and sizes, to help you understand the type and which would best suit your needs take a look at our clematis groupings below which are in rough order of flowering times throughout the year.

Clematis Groups

Group	Examples	Prune Code	Ideal Situations
Evergreen	armandii 'Enham Star', chirrhosa 'Freckles'	1	Sunny
Alpina	Frances Rivis, Pamela Jackman	1	Shady
Macropetala	Jan Lindmark	1	Sunny
Montana		1
Rockery	cartmanii 'Joe', 'Avalanche'	1
Early Large-Flowered	Nelly Moser	2	Shady
Late Large-Flowered	Jackmanii Superba, Hagley Hybrid	2	Shady
Herbaceous	heracleifolia	4
Viticella	Polish Spirit, Etoile Violette	3	Sunny
Texensis	Princess of Wales	3
Orientalis	Bill Mackenzie	3	Sunny
Late Mixed	terniflora	3

Pruning Clematis

Pruning clematis should be done regularly to promote strong and healthy growth which will be full of flower and foliage from top to bottom if not done correctly you will find lots of woody growth and bare stems at the base of the plant with no flower. To help there are three main ways to prune clematis, the different groups depend on the flowering time. We have also used a fourth group for herbaceous types.

Pruning Code 1 - These are the earlier flowering types which flower on last years growth. They do not need pruning necessarily although if you want to prune for shape or size then prune after flowering in spring after the risk of frosts. If you do prune these the first year they can be cut to 30cm in February to encourage branching. Second year after flowering cut to 1m to again encourage branching out. In Subsequent years just cut out dead wood and cut to shape after flowering.

Pruning Code 2 - These are the large-flowered types which flower between May and June one last year’s growth. You may well on some varieties get flower again in late summer on this years growth. In first year they can be cut to 30cm in February to encourage branching. Second year after flowering cut to 1m to again encourage branching out. In Subsequent cut back all stems to a strong pair of buds to the space/shape you want take out any old dead wood again in February.

Pruning Code 3 - These flower in late summer on this seasons growth. They grow completely new growth from the base up each year. In first year they can be cut to 30cm in February to encourage branching. In the Second year cut all stems to 45cm to encourage branching. All other years cut stems back to between 45-75cm.

Pruning Code 4 - This group is for herbaceous clematis, which should be cut back to the ground or 15cm height in late autumn or early spring. Where completely new growth will appear each year.

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Roses

All of our roses at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester are English grown, with the majority coming from Leicestershire rose growers, Bentley-West Roses. We also stock the famous David Austin English rose collection, bred and grown at their nurseries in the West Midlands, beloved for their large, old fashioned blooms and exquisite fragrance – look for the gold embossed, green square pots. Roses have always been a firm favorite with our customers at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester. Their vivid colours, old-world charm and irresistible scent can earn them a place in any garden, and although needing a little more maintenance than some shrubs, they will reward you well for your pruning and dead-heading. Gone are the days of formal rose gardens and rose beds – the best way to enjoy these beautiful bushes are to plant them in a mixed border, amongst other shrubs and herbaceous perennials that will complement them and take over the show once the flowering has stopped.

 

There are several categories of roses, these include:-
Hybrid Tea roses	which have large, high-centred flowers.
Floribunda roses	which have smaller flowers in greater numbers.
Patio roses	which are compact, producing lots of small flowers, and are the best rose for a pot.
Climbing/Rambling roses	Both types are great for climbing up walls, fences and trellis. Ramblers have one spectacular show of roses, whilst climbers produce flowers over a longer period, yet have less out at the same time.
Shrub roses	This eclectic group includes species roses and old fashioned roses such as bourbons, damasks, gallicas, rugosas and lots more. For the plant collector and historian in you.
David Austin English roses	Modern shrub roses with huge, full, quartered blooms and many distinct fragrances. Deservedly popular.
Ground Cover roses	Mat-forming roses that will scramble over the ground and are particularly effective cascading from the top of a low wall or raised bed.

Tips for growing great roses

Prune in late February / early March. Each rose category requires different ways of pruning – Check out D.G. Hessayon's Rose Expert book for a simple guide, or come in and ask us about it. Always prune just above a bud with a slanting cut, sloping away from the bud.

When planting a rose, use David Austin 'START' in the hole – A blend of mycorrhizal fungi and rose food that will help the plant establish quickly.

Dead-head frequently in the summer: once a flower has faded, cut off the whole flower head back to the first leaves. This helps to produce more flower buds for later.

For the biggest flowers and healthiest foliage, feed roses with Bayer Toprose, firstly in the spring, when the foliage starts to grow, and then once in the summer.

Roses can be grown in pots and containers on the patio, and for this, we recommend Patio bush and Patio climbing roses. Other roses can be grown in large pots, but will need to be transplanted into the garden after 2-3 years.

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Perennials

Perennials are the ideal plants if you want colour year after year, this is a huge group of plants with plants for all situations, when you come into Glebe Garden Centre Leicester you will see some great ideas and displays of Perennials which you could be inspired by and maybe try out at home. As well as these mouth watering displays we have a fully stocked A-Z collection of perennials, stocking the favorites through to some more unusually varieties. Again these are all UK grown and great quality ready to go straight into the ground or containers. We also stock a great value range in the spring which are slightly smaller but a great cost effective way to fill your beds.

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Herbs

Growing your own herbs is a great way to have fresh herbs available on your doorstep 365 days a year. We stock herbs in the spring summer and autumn and even a very few basics can often be found in the winter. From the English classics, Thyme, Rosemary and Sage through to Borage which can be used for its bright blue flowers in ice cubes we stock the lot. The best thing about herbs is their versatility, you can grow them inside/outside, in containers, baskets, raised beds or in the ground. Our herbs are great value and ready to plant and use straight away. We often view herbs in two categories the culinary or the ornamental/medicinal herbs.

Which herbs should I grow?

Herbs are the most useful plants to have around at easy reach for all occasions, here are just a few of what we think are the right herbs for the right occasions.

Sunday Lunch	BBQ	Italian Food	Drinks
Rosemary - Lamb	Chives	Oregano	Borage - Flower in Ice Cube
Thyme	Dill	Marjoram	Mint - Mojito
Sage - Stuffing	Basil	Basil	Thyme - Lemonade
Mint - Mint Sauce	Coriander	Rosemary	Chamomile - Tea
Parsely	Tarragon	Garlic

How to grow herbs in a container?

1. Get a good container, with lots of planting pockets or compartments.	2. Make sure there is adequate drainage at the base.		3. Fill with a multi-purpose compost and add some feed to the mix.

4. Set out the herbs you want.	5. Plant the herbs and firm down with more compost.	6. Give them a good water and feed throughout the season then enjoy!

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Alpines

These are some of the most versatile and useful plants to have in your garden, they can be used practically everywhere and there is a huge range to chose from. From baskets, containers, trailing over walls, filling between gaps in the patio. We have a great offer at Glebe with a large pic-a-mix selection. All grown in the UK with colour to last for years to come. Some of our most popular alpines - Violas, Primulas, Sedums, Saxifrage, Sempavirons, Ibiris just to name a few. Come to Glebe Garden Centre Leicester and take a look at our full ever changing selection.

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Conifers

We think conifers are one of the most useful groups of plants to have in the garden, with almost all being evergreen and such a wide group with think there is a conifer for you. Our conifers are grown very locally here in South Leicestershire by one of the UK's leading conifer specialists. As our grower specialises in conifers they grow some great and unusual varieties, as well as all of the ones you would expect to see. Take a look at our Love me Love my Conifer video below. Also come and take a look at a very special and rare conifer we have in stock. Pinus montezumae 'Sheffield Park'. Which we think is a real winner with its unusuall bottle brush growth habbit. One not to miss.

 

Conifers for all situations

Feature	Type
Dwarf	There are plenty of dwarf varieties available, which can be used in sink gardens or mixed with bedding displays. From Cypress to Pines there are plenty to use.
Ground Cover	Junipers come in all shape and sizes but are ideal for creating a carpet effect, there are also Yews (Taxus baccata prostrata).
Borders	Using different shapes and colours in and around the garden with Cypress (Chamaecyparis).
Structure	Yew columns (Taxtus baccata 'Fastigiata') creat great focal points and give height to the garden.
Containers	Lots of conifers are suitable for containers make sure it's just not a variety that will grow huge. Also consider the colour and shape of the plant and how it will work with the container.
Hedging	Great plants for low-hedges, privacy, screening. Yews, Junipers, Thujas can all be great. The most important point with conifers as hedging is keep them cut every one or two years to keep them fresh and well shaped.

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Ornamental Trees

Our ornamental trees are mostly grown in Yorkshire, we are very selective with the trees we stock mainly stocking smaller trees which are well suited to the smaller gardens of today with a range which will suit all locations and tastes. We try to make sure our trees are compact so they can be best handled from the garden centre to your home. When thinking of planting a tree it's important to consider a few points. Location, how much sun will it get, is the site windy or exposed? Soil Conditions, how dry or boggy is the area? Evergreen/Non Evergreen, do you want all year round foliage or maybe stem colour? Is flower important to you, do you want spring flowering or autumn? Thinking about what you want from a tree can help you get the ideal tree to suit your garden. When you have an idea come in and speak to us so we can recommend the ideal tree. Trees can be used as single specimens for the central piece to a garden or border or a few could be planted together to form structure. Or growing them in avenues or lines to add height and scale to the garden. You can even grow some small trees in containers especially multi-stemed trees.

Which Tree?

Ideas for selecting the best tree;
Trees for containers	Japenese Maples - Many colours, with bright foliage in the spring changing throughout the seasons.
Small trees	Acer platanoides Drummmondii - Variegated Norway Maple Pyrus saclicifolia Pendula - Weeping Silver Pear Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy'
Autumn Interest	Robinia pseudoacacia frisia - Golden foliage on tall slender branches. Cercidiphyllum japonicum - Sweet burnt sugar scent in autumn.
Spring flowering trees	Prunus padus Pandora - Great blooms of blossom in the spring. Prunus serrulata Shirotae - Mt. Fuji Cherry.
Evergreen trees	Cotoneasters - Small to medium sized with small flower in spring followed by often red berries in the autumn.  Eucalyptus - Blue/Silver foliage, evergreen large trees.

How to plant a tree

1. Carefully remove the tree from its container.

2. Give the roots a good soak in water for at least half an hour.

3. Mark out the area where the tree will live and dig a hole for it, the depth and width should ideally be twice the size of the root ball. Go deeper if the roots are going to be squashed.

4. Backfill with Rose Tree and Shrub compost and a good handful of bonemeal, place your tree upright in the hole with the roots just below ground level.

5. Break up the existing soil mixing it with Rose Tree and Shrub compost and gently fill in around the roots, then firm lightly with your feet.

6. Continue filling the hole, each time treading the soil in more firmly.

7. Tidy up and apply a boarder mixture mulch around the base of the tree and water thoroughly.

8. Also consider whether the tree needs staking, we advise it to protect the tree from the wind especially in the first couple of years of planting.

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Fruit Trees

Our fruit trees all British grown keeping our carbon foot print low come from one of the countries leading fruit growers in Hampshire. We stock a large range of fruit trees from the smallest dwarf fruit, minarettes and croquellas through to full size trees for mini orchards and also fan and cordon trained trees. It can be surprisingly easy to grow your favorite fruit even if you only have limited space. There are a couple of simple steps to make sure you select the correct fruit tree, what size tree and pollination. To help we have a couple of guides bellow.

Size Guide

This size guide relates to the rootstock which the fruit trees are grafted onto. Depending on the size of the rootstock will depend on the eventual size of the tree. Below is a grid showing the type of fruit and whether it's dwarf, semi-dwarf etc. So if you wanted a medium sized apple tree you would select the semi-vigorous MM106 size. All of our fruit trees in store relate to these sizes below.

	VERY DWARF (>1.5m)	DWARF (>2m)	SEMI-DWARF (>2.5m)	SEMI-VIGOROUS (>3m)	VIGOROUS (>4m)
Apples	M27	M9	M26	MM106	MM11/M25
Pears			QC	QA
Plum		VVA1	PIXY	ST JULIEN A
Cherry			GIESLA 5		COLT
Peach, Apricot, Nectarine			MONTCLARE	ST JULIEN A

 

Pollination Guide

Much of our fruit at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester is self fertile, meaning you won't need more than one tree to get fruit. All self fertile fruit trees are marked with a label showing this. Most suburban situations provide good pollen due to the close proximity of other gardens. It is not always necessary to have pollinators if the bees and other pollinating insects are generous with their visits.
Apples are the main set of fruit trees you may need to consider pollination if you have no other Apple trees close by. Select two varieties in the same group or the adjoining group ie group 2 and 4 will pollinate group 3 as will any others in group 3.

GROUP 2	GROUP 3	GROUP 4	GROUP 5
Egremont Russet	Bountiful Bramley's Seedling* Cox's Ornage Pippin Discovery Falstaff Fiesta/Red Pippin Greensleeves James Grieve Kidd's Orange Red Sunset Worcester Pearmain	Braeburn Gala/Royal Gala Golden Delicious	Newton Wonder

(*Triploid - Requires 2 pollinating partners)

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Soft Fruit

Love eating Strawberries and cream whilst watching Wimbledon in the summer? Or a crumbly Rhubarb crumble with custard after the Sunday roast? Then come and take a look at the range of soft fruit we keep at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester. UK grown great quality and value you can plant and be eating fruit in no time. Take a look at some of the fruit you can expect to see at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester.

 

Fruit	Detail
Blueberries	A super food full of vitamins.
Strawberries	Lots of choice for fruit all Summer long for the ground container and even hanging basket varieties.
Raspberries	Both Summer and Autumn fruiting.
Blackcurrents	Most popular of the currents mid-summer fruiting.
White and Red currents	We also stock both red and white currents.
Grapes	Growing grapes for the greenhouse or even outdoors.
Rhubarb	Fresh shoots for the best homemade crumbles.
Figs	Grow figs up against walls where they can bake in the sun.
Tayberries, Sunberries and more	Some more unusual hybrid berries which are lovely and sweet.

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Water Plants

Our water plants are a great addition to your garden pond, bog gardens, waterside situations, or container water gardens. We stock a good range for all different zones, from Marginals through to Floating Pond plants and Water Lilies. The main thing to look out for is which zone you are wanting to plant. Below you will find a useful table which can help you decide which plants for where, these zones correspond to all of our water plants at Glebe so when you come in it will be easy to make your selection.

 

Pondside Plants (Brown)	Zone 1
Ornamental Marginal Plants (Red)	Zone 2/3
Native Marginal Plants (Red)	Zone 2/3
Filter Feeding Plants (Red)	Zone 2/3
Oxygenating Plants (Green	Zone 4
Deep Water Plants (Green/Blue)	Zone 4
Water Lilies (Purple)	Zone 4
Floating Plants (Orange)	Zone 5

In addition to these plants you will also find all of the other items you will need for you pond here at Glebe take a look at our aquatics section.

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Hedge Plants

We stock a good range of hedging plants in packs or bundles ready to plant. We get fresh stock in the autumn each year and the ideal time to plant being from October to March with traditional hedging plants while they are not actively growing. Plants such as Hawthorn, Beech, Privet, Yew, box and more are ideal to be planting then. There is also a wide array of plants which can be grown and used as hedging and these as long as watered well can be planted all year. Plants such as, Photinias, Laurels, Loniceras, all make great hedges.

Low growing hedges

We are often asked how to grow low-growing hedges, these are often found in formal knot gardens or cottage gardens but can be great used as an edge to the front garden or for low dividers. Some ideal plants to use are, Box, Lonicera and Eyonymous. 

Flowering hedges

If you want to create a stunning flowering hedge then come and take a look at some of the great plants on offer at Glebe, stock a good range of plants ideal for just that! Forsythia, Yellow masses of flower in the spring. Lavender, uses English lavender for a hardy low growing hedge with mass of fragrant flower. Fuchsias are great used as hedges, take a look through our good selection of hardy fuchsias in the Spring and into the Summer. Or maybe you are looking at keeping unwanted intrueres out, use the spiky Berberis with flowers and berries.

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Grasses Ferns & Bamboo

At Glebe Garden Centre Leicester we keep these plants together as we think they go well together, often used in more contemporary planting styles they provide a modern look and feel to all gardens. Grasses are great on their own or used with perennials or shrubs in mixed boarders, they can be used for height and stucture or the great seed heads they produce in the autumn (Panicums, Miscanthus, Pennisetums, Stipas). There are the smaller grasses which come in many colours from yellows to blues these are great used at the front of the boarder in groups maybe with some decorative stones (Carex, Festucas, Stipas). We also stock a range of ferns and bamboo, both adding great texture shades of green to the garden.

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Rhododendrons Azaleas & Camellias

We keep these plants together at Glebe Garden Centre Leicester as they are all acid-loving, we stock a big selection of Rhododendrons and Azaleas all from the UK from smaller plants through to some larger specimens, they all flower in the spring, camellias first then shortly followed by the Rhodos and Azaleas. Rhododendrons can grow to large shrubs are a great focal point in the garden when fully out in bloom, providing shade. To get the best out of these plants make sure they are well drained and not sitting in stagnant water and the most important thing of all use the right compost, take a look below. 

What compost for Rhododendrons Azaleas & Camellias?

A group of plants which share one very important growing condition, they are all acid loving meaning if you put them straight into the ground or into a tub with a multi-purpose compost they will suffer. So use ericaceous compost this will make sure you get great looking healthy and fully flowering plants. Not only use the correct compost but also when it comes to feeding use and ericaceous feed which again will encourage the best out of your plants. If you know the pH of your soil then the ideal is pH 5-5.5 which is very low in lime. You can improve this with ericaceous compost or a mix if the pH is already not to acidic.

Other acid loving plants

There are other plants which thrive in acidic conditions some of these are Heathers, Hydrangers, Peris, Magnolias, Conifers and Skimmias, Acers.

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Ask about Garden Plants or talk to us now on 0116 277 1570