They come in a wide range of colours, including beautiful speckled specimens.

The canna was introduced to Europe from South America and Asia nearly 200 years ago. The original species were very tall, with long joined stems and single flowers.

All the modern hybrids are descended from these. They vary in size from dwarf to tall.

The rhizomes multiply into thick clumps.

Lift these in late winter or early spring and divide into small offsets, each with a potential new shoot, and discard the older parts. This should be done every two or three years to keep the plants vigorous.

Cannas need a well-drained soil and full sunlight.

They are gross feeders and will give a better display if they have plenty of manure and other organic material such as compost.

At least three weeks before planting, a top dressing of dolomite should be applied.

Offshoots should be planted no closer than 60 centimetres apart, with the rhizome part at, or just below, the surface.

When the new growth has appeared well above ground, a side-dressing of a complete garden fertiliser, or compost can be applied along with a mulch of more manure.

As the individual flowers fade it is best to cut them off before they set seed, because seedlings have a tendency to revert to original types.

Cannas don’t suffer much from pests and diseases, but young growth should be protected from snails, slugs and earwigs.

Avoid overhead watering in the flowering season, because wet blooms wilt and mark badly when exposed to the sun.

The hellebores are a group of pretty plants that flower in winter, when other blooms are scarce.

They include the winter rose, the Christmas rose and the lenten rose.

They belong to the family ranunculaceae and the genus helleborus, which has about 15 different species.

They usually thrive in limestone areas.

Some have their flowers at the end of leafy stems and others have their flowers and leaves near the base of the plant.

Hellebores like the cool climate of Tasmania and prefer a semi-shaded position.

The soil should be moist and preferably clay or loam rather than sandy.

It should hold sufficient moisture so that the roots remain cool and don’t dry out, although some will stand periods of dryness while they are semi-dormant during summer.

Before planting, the soil should be enriched with compost and rotted animal manure.

Add a surface mulch, to protect the roots.

When planting any of the hellebores, make sure you choose the right position, as they don’t like being disturbed for several years.

Helleborus orientalis, the lenten rose, grows to about 60 centimetres and there is a wide range of colours among its hybrids, from white to various shades of pink and plum.

They are usually speckled with dark purple or greenish tones, which make the flowers even more attractive.

Helleborus niger, the Christmas rose, is a pure white flowering variety in which the latin word niger referring to the plant’s black roots, which are supposed to be poisonous.

These are the two most popular hellebores in home gardens.

Their flowers are very attractive for indoor decoration.

When cut, split the stems up the centre for about five centimtetres to allow water to be absorbed more easily

An unusual one is helleborus viridis, also known as bear’s foot.

This grows to 30 to 45 centimetres, and is a green-flowering variety with drooping flower heads. It does well in frosty areas.