The snowberry goes unnoticed for much of the year, but comes into its own when everything else dies back, writes GINA PARKINSON.

THIS is the season for holly and ivy and red berries and all the rest, but there is a shrub in the garden that goes against this scheme and covers itself with white pearls in late autumn and early winter.

Symphoricarpus is such a common shrub that it is hardly noticed in the garden.

Unremarkable rounded green leaves cover twiggy stems in spring and summer; insignificant pink flowers appear in the summer. Then one day when everything else in the garden has dropped its leaves or died back, something white catches the eye and a second glance confirms that there in the corner or against a fence or in the hedge are the palest berries hanging in clusters from thin brown stems.

These are the fruit of this ordinary shrub that has saved itself for winter glory.

Appropriately enough Symphoricarpus is also called snowberry which seems odd at the height of summer, but makes sense once its fruit is revealed.

This simple workhorse of a plant will grow in any situation or soil. Alarm bells may be ringing at this point and, of course, there is a drawback to this obliging behaviour, as snowberry will cover large areas if left unchecked.

This makes it ideal for wilder areas of the garden, but where space is more limited it can be used in hedging: unwanted shoots can be cut out in early spring, followed by a further trim in summer. Keeping some of the flowering shoots on the shrub will ensure a good crop of berries in autumn.

• Weekend catch-up

I LOVE gathering stems from the garden for Christmas decorations and this weekend is the last chance to do this.

The whippy stems from bamboos and dog wood are ideal for making a frame for a door wreath. They can be bent and woven together to form a circular frame that can be decorated with evergreen.

Holly and ivy are the traditional choice and always look lovely, especially if there are few stems carrying red berries from the holly, black from the ivy.

Our holly berries were scarce this year, so they have been supplemented with stems from a cotoneaster. The leaves have dropped from this shrub, leaving small red berries behind.

The snowberry above would be a good choice for colour, but I find the berries drop very quickly after cutting. Seed heads from herbaceous plants and flowering shrubs will add more interest and fill in some spaces.

Achillea and phlomis both carry their seed heads into December. Try drying them for a day or so then spraying silver before adding them to the wreath.

• Bulbs

THERE is still just about time to plant tulip bulbs, although this late hour may mean they will flower a little later than suggested on the packet.

November is the usual time for this task, but if the weather stays reasonably mild and the soil isn’t frosted they can still be put out.

Make the planting whole three times the depth of the bulb, so that it can be covered by double it height in soil.

If the ground is heavy, a layer of grit can be put in the bottom of the hole to help with drainage. A sunny position is preferred but they will also bloom in semi shade where the flowers are slower to open but last longer.

If there is no space in the garden, tulips can be potted up in containers. Smaller pots can have one layer of bulbs planted at the depth suggested above, while larger containers will be big enough for two or three layers.

Choose the largest bulbs for the deepest layer, cover with compost then add a second tier and a third if necessary. Water and place in a sunny spot by the house where they can be seen from a window next spring.

Gardening TV and radio

Tomorrow

8am, BBC Radio Humberside, The Great Outdoors. With Blair Jacobs and Doug Stewart.

9am, BBC Radio York, Julia Lewis.

9am, BBC Radio Leeds, Tm Crowther and Joe Maiden.

2pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. An 1860s themed episode from the Living Museum of the North in Beamish, Durham. Chairman Eric Robson is joined by panellists Chris Beardshaw, Bob Fowerdew and Christine Walkden. (Repeated from Friday).

Friday

3pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. Peter Gibbs presents a special festive edition of the programme from the Met office in Exeter and is joined by panellists Bunny Guinness, Anne Swithinbank and Matthew Wilson.