Peter Dowdall: Berberis offers both beauty and security 

Whether you're a gardening beginner or expert, Irish Examiner columnist Peter Dowdall has the answer to your questions

Admiring the frost on winter leaves, such as on this berberis, is one of the delights of the winter garden. Picture: iStock

DO YOU know the way that you kind of forget about a plant? Well, that’s what had happened to me and the berberis until recently on a beautiful, crisp and very cold morning, I was out in a garden, the entire landscape was covered in white, where Jack Frost had exhaled overnight.

Everything looked so fresh and beautiful. A heavy fog had nearly lifted and the ground was still frozen. To look out at it, it looked like everything was frozen in time. I wasn’t looking out at it though, I was out in it and I stopped to admire a Berberis. Its leaves were covered in this crystalised water and it looked so perfect.