Note: Cotoneaster lacteus, mentioned below, has been recognized as an invasive species that threatens California’s native plant communities. For more, see the Invasive Plant Council (cal-ipc.org).

Red berries set against rich green leaves are one of the most attractive sights in winter. Yet most of them, including the flesh-covered seeds of the yew, disappear during the darkest days of ...

Q. I used to live in Virginia and had English holly shrubs to provide greens for holiday decorations. Now that I live in Southern California, I could use a suggestion for a good holly substitute that ...

Every garden, large or small, needs plants that really earn their keep. Cotoneasters do that. They are handsome, dense shrubs - or small trees - with good habits and impressive flowers. A member of ...

I have a volunteer cotoneaster growing in my garden and I cannot decide whether to remove it or just let it be. A volunteer is a plant that sprouts from a seed you never planted. It comes from a seed ...

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. A big crop of red berries is a traditional sign that a British winter will be cold. So far this year, tradition ...

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. I wish I could grow camellias but the garden’s soil is all wrong. Instead I can grow cotoneasters, so why have ...