Regions: Central India

Velvet crested heads that hold colour for weeks, in sun or half shade.

The most reliable cut flower for an Indian summer terrace.

A fortnight of spectacle and then a head of seed the birds will take.

Opens in full sun on a terrace where nothing else will survive noon.

Orange flower clusters straight off the trunk — a sacred tree, now threatened.

Flame of the forest — bare branches and orange flowers through the dry spring.

The garden chrysanthemum of the north-Indian winter, sold by the crate at Diwali.

Plant single cloves in October and lift whole bulbs in March.

Grown from sets or seedlings; needs depth, sun and patience.

Companion-planting workhorse: keeps nematodes down and feeds bees all season.