Garden Plants

Shrubs

Soil Type

Before embarking on planting any shrubs, a gardener should know the pH level of the soil.  Some shrubs will thrive in an alkaline soil and some like a more acidic soil. 

• pH level less than 7 = acidic soil
• ph level more than 7 = alkaline soil
• ph level 7 – neutral soil

A pH level of 6.5 is moderately acidic and is considered the best general purpose pH for gardens, allowing a wide range of plants to grow.  The availability of major nutrients is at its highest and bacterial and earthworm activity is optimum at this pH.

Shrubs that love acidic soil are rhododendrons, camelia, azaleas, pieris and heathers.

Shrubs that love an alkaline soil are acers, lavender, lilac and hydrangea.

Aspect

As well as considering the soil type, the position in the garden must be considered.  Most shrubs will thrive in well-drained soil, in a sunny aspect for most of the day with some shade.  A mainly shaded area of the garden is more challenging.  However, at Kilcannon Garden Centre, we have many varieties of shade loving shrubs for you to choose from.

Evergreen shrubs like the spotted laurel which has bright variegated yellow and green foliage with bright red berries in Autumn and Winter will flourish in a shaded area all year round.  As will certain herbaceous perennials, like the hosta with beautiful blue flowers.  For climbers for a shaded area, look no further than hydrangae petiolaris and for ground cover, the evergreen vinca will impress with its beautiful blue or purple flowers.

Popular Shrubs

It is the shrubs in your garden that will really define it and tell its story.  Defined as a woody plant with multiple stems coming from the base, they can be deciduous or evergreen.  They will provide year round interest for your garden as there are thousands of varieties that peak at different times throughout the year.  Some of the most popular with our customers are:

For Spring

For Summer

For Autumn

For Winter

Roses

There are so many roses to chose from that selecting roses for your garden can seem like a daunting process.  We stock over 50 varieties and our expert team are available to advise you on the best to suit your garden. 

Plant bare rooted roses in late Autumn or early Spring. Containerised roses can be planted all year round provided the ground is not too frosty or too dry.  Mixing in organic matter, such as farmyard manure with the soil when planting will help roses thrive. Prune back in late Winter or early Spring.  Roses are attractive to greenfly, blackfly and other pests and may need to be treated for these. 

Roses are so varied and versatile, they will work for a dedicated rose garden, a trellis on a sunny wall, or patio containers.  Call in to browse our selection.

Bedding Plants

The vibrancy of bedding plants will punctuate your garden with colour and personality from late Spring until early Winter.  We produce our own bedding plants in our on-site nursery, which means they are accustomed to local climate and so ensuring they are high-quality and long-lasting.    

No other group of plants provides such exuberant colour for flower beds or borders.  They also provide a mass of colour for patio pots, containers, hanging baskets and window boxes. These are ideal for small gardens and balcony gardens. 

Spring and Summer Bedding Plants

Spring and Summer bedding plants are usually half-hardy annuals.  These cannot tolerate low temperatures and can only be planted when all risk of frost has passed.

Autumn and Winter Bedding Plants

There are some bedding plants that flower in late Autumn and into the Winter.  These are available in our garden centre from late August and can be planted up until October.

Alpine Plants

Alpine plants can be a wonder in the garden.  They are extremely interesting in their form and very attractive all year round.  They are hardy perennials and survive well in harsh conditions and poor soils.

Traditionally used in rockeries, they are also known as rock garden plants.  They are best suited to dry areas of the garden and so as well as rockeries, creeping varieties are used for hanging over walls and as ground cover.

Alpine plants are very suited to current gardening trends of architectural style landscaping, minimalist gardens, vertical wall gardens and container gardening.

Most are remarkable for their foliage alone but many varieties also produce striking flowers.

Call in to us for advice and to check out our range.

Grasses

Much like alpines, ornamental grasses have increased in popularity over the last decade.

In fact, grasses can work well with alpines as many grasses can cope with poor soils and prefer dry conditions.  They too, are stunning in gardens that are architectural and minimalist in style.

They’re highly valued as low-maintenance plants and provide interest for most, if not all of the year. Grasses are hardy, resistant to pests and diseases and are quick growing.  Plants can be annual or perennial, evergreen or deciduous, and range in height from 30cm to about 4m. They are often used to create breaks in busy flower beds and for minimalist container displays. 

Grasses should be planted in Spring or Autumn.  We also have grasses available that prefer shaded areas and like more moisture.  Ask us for advice to ensure you are choosing the best grasses for the specific areas of your garden.  Check out our range of garden pots.

Trees

‘Trees are precious.  There is little else on earth that plays host to such a rich community of life within a single living organism’.

  Sir David Attenborough

Trees are usually the most prominent feature in the garden and their height and form add structure to the landscape.  They will encourage wildlife to thrive as they act as a shelter for birds, animals and insects.  Not to mention that they provide us with the air we breathe.

There is a tree to suit every garden:

• Small – Weeping Willow, Cherry Blossom, Weepint Cotoneaster, Pink Hawthorn, Weeping Pear, Wedding Cake Tree, Paper Bark Maple, Small Japanese Maples, Dwarf Evergreens
• Medium – Birch, Amelanchier, Ornamental Crab Apple, Weeping Cherry Blossom, Carpinus, Mountain Ash, Laburnum, Medium Maples, Strawberry Tree, Medium Evergreens
• Large – Oak, Beech, Ash, Tulip Trees, Tilia, Liquidambar, Large Acers, Large, Maples, Large Cherry Blossom, Large Willow, Large Evergreens

We often choose trees based on their foliage, however, they have so much more to offer, be it decorative bark, gorgeous flowers, vivid berries, a beautiful scent, stunning autumn foliage or a striking winter silhouette.  They can bring interest to your garden throughout the whole year.  Here are our top picks based on our favourite features:

• Decorative Bark – Paperbark Maple, Silver Birch, Himalayan Birch, Prunus Serrula
• Flowering – Cherry Blossom, Magnolia, Ornamental Crab Apple, Pink Hawthorn, Red Horse-Chestnut, Tulip Trees, Handkerchief Tree, Cornus
• Attractive Fruit – Ornamental Crab Apple, Cotoneaster, Mountain Ash, Strawberry Tree, Holly, Hawthorn and edible fruits and nuts such as apple, pear, plum, cherry, walnut and hazelnut.
• Autumn foliage – Japanese Maple, Liquidambar, Dogwood.
• Winter interest – Holly, Strawberry Tree, Evergrens

We have a wide variety of deciduous and evergreen trees.  Speak to our horticulturists about the best trees to suit your garden.

Fruit Trees and Bushes

Fruit and Nut Trees

If you have fruit trees in your garden, you will be rewarded for decades with delicious fruits much more flavoursome than anything you can buy.  The rewards don’t stop there.  They certainly add to the aesthetics of the garden and produce wonderful blooms in early Summer. 

Plant fruit trees in Winter.  They usually need a different variety of the same species of fruit to pollinate each other.  This means that you need 2 varieties of apples, pears etc. to ensure you get fruit.  Some trees are self-fertile which means they can pollinate themselves. Our expert staff will guide you in your selection.  During the planting season, we stock many varieties of apple, pear, cherry, plum, hazelnut and sweet chestnut trees.

Soft Fruits

Soft fruits are small, sweet, fleshy berries that are formed in abundance on different plants right through the Summer season.  As a Wexford garden centre, our most well-known soft fruit is the strawberry.  We stock many other varieties throughout the season including raspberries, redcurrants, blackcurrants, blueberries, gooseberries and rhubarb.

Plant in the sunniest part of your garden, in well drained-soil and you’ll have beautiful, jewel-like fruits all Summer.

Hedging

Hedges are a natural, environmentally friendly way to define your garden.  They create privacy and also shelter for your home, for other plants and for wildlife.

Plant bare rooted hedging from October to early Spring.  Potted hedging plants can be planted any time of the year.  Planting a hedge is a bigger commitment than most of your garden planting.  The aim is for it to become a permanent structure with a specific purpose of bordering your garden.  It is, therefore, imperative when planting that you give it every chance to establish strong roots and encourage robust growth.  The foundation for good growth lies with good soil preparation and planting conditions.  This will help to establish new plants quickly, encourage strong root and stem growth and ultimately, determine how well your hedge will develop.

Our horticulturists will advise you on how to give your hedge the best start.  According to seasonality, we stock a variety of different hedging such as griselinia, hawthorn, beech, laurel, privet, box, fuschia, red robin and escalonia.