You'll be surprised at their beauty and brilliance under a Winter Sun.

All heathers seem to be an answer to all gardeners prayers, as they are evergreen, look good all year round, will grow anywhere and need very little TLC.

At this time to year heathers are hugely useful and are they are used to an array of soils from alkaline to chalky.

The winter flowering heathers are varieties Erica cornea and E. xdarleyensis. Look out for them at your local nursery or garden centre, and plant them at the front of your beds or borders in gaps that could do with filling.

They will tolerate a certain amount of shade, but are happiest in full sun with a well drained soil with some compost to allow them to get back to their favourite boggy roots.

They can be lightly clipped once all the blooms have faded, and this will encourage them to remain thick and produce more shoots again next Winter.

Try to plant them 6 to 8 inches apart, and fill in the gaps between them with crocuses.

Come the Summer as all your flowers start to fade they will slip into the shadows, and to take their place in the spotlight once more will be your lovely heathers.

Happy gardening my fellow Steemians!

@heatherhunter aka @mindhunter