When other colours begin to fade, evergreens and berries will see you through, advises GINA PARKINSON.

EVERGREENS and berries begin to come to the fore this month as the final flowers of summer fade and herbaceous perennials die back for their winter slumber.

Mild weather has kept things going longer than usual. I notice our dahlias have yet to blacken with the first touch of frost, but there is an unmistakable air of decay in the air.

The holly tree in our garden is heavy with fruit, much more than normal and it is spread evenly over the tree rather than on one or two, usually inaccessible branches.

Although nothing special, it is the common holly Ilex aquifolium, I love the dark shiny evergreen leaves and bright red berries and at about four metres it gives much needed height in our small garden.

The tree is also good climbing material for the cat, who seems oblivious to the prickly foliage and spends hours at the top precariously lunging at flies and watching the birds who sit just out of reach on the telegraph wires.

Cotoneasters are also good for bright autumn fruit and are reliable and easy. They tolerate most soils and conditions and although they do best in full sun, they will tolerate partial shade. Pruning isn't essential but will be necessary if growth gets out of hand. The cotoneaster family is large and ranges from prostate ground cover to trees of six metres or more with some species being evergreen and other deciduous.

The fishbone cotoneaster, Cotoneaster horizontalis, is deciduous with small leaves on ground-hugging branches that will spread beneath taller plants or spill over on to the path. It will also grow up a wall, making a network of branches covered in white flowers in spring and an abundance of red berries in autumn.

Cotoneaster salicifolious is evergreen and grows into a tall tree with long narrow leaves on thin, almost weeping branches. It is very attractive tree and I have seen it grown as a multi-stemmed specimen with fruit-bearing branches growing all the way up the several trunks or as a single trunked tree topped with a mass of branches.

The climbing hydrangea, Hydrangea petiolaris, has had a good autumn, producing soft yellow leaves which stay on the plant for a few weeks before dropping to reveal dark stems covered in peeling bark.

This is a great plant for a north-facing wall which, once the plant is established, will be quickly covered in self-clinging branches and large white, scented, lacecap type flowers in June. These fade and dry in summer and can be left on the plant through winter and cut off as new growth appears in spring.

New plants take a few years to settle and need to be fixed against the wall temporarily until they can attach themselves. Once established, growth will be rampant and an area as large as 20m x 20m or more can be covered.

Pruning isn't necessary as far as promoting new growth is concerned and can affect flowering if done too hard, but some stems may need to be removed if the plant gets too large. Do this in winter by cutting back to just above an outward facing bud.

Updated: 09:43 Saturday, November 08, 2003