There are four annual cosmos, two pink flowered and two with white blooms, in our garden. They are planted in different locations and it is interesting to see in which position they have done best.

The two sited in beds full of perennials where they have to compete for space and sun have yet to reach full flower, although they are covered in buds. They both get sun from the late morning to mid to late afternoon with one in a lighter and sunnier spot than the other.

The specimen in a new, empty border with morning to early-afternoon sun has done a little better but is still opening only one flower at a time rather than the long-lasting flush I had expected. However, the plant put against a south-facing brick wall has been covered in blooms for a fortnight, attracting scores of hoverflies to its large open flowers and producing lots of buds to take over when these flowers fade.

In another part of the garden, Clematis alpina 'Francis Rivis' climbs along a wall and into Amelanchier lamarckii, a small, spring-flowering shrub. Both plants finished flowering several weeks ago but the clematis is now covered in fluffy seed heads that are giving renewed attraction to the shrub which is uninteresting at this time of year. The seedheads will gradually fade by which time the firey and orange autumn colours of the Amelanchier will take over for a few weeks.

Hardy and tender fuchsias are coming into their best this month with bushes covered in blooms which last until the first frosts of autumn. Hardy fuchsias are useful shrubs that grow in most positions and soils although deep shade will affect flowering. They can be used as specimen plants and pruned to grow into standards either for pots or in the garden or grown as multi-stemmed shrubs with annual, hard pruning. Hardy fuchsias also make attractive hedges either as a single species or mixed with other hedging plants such as hawthorn and beech.

Updated: 09:54 Saturday, August 02, 2003