No fuss Super Hardy Evergreen Exotics to try! 

Acuba picturata is a really nice variety. We had this weather your having last winter and a bad week again this year. Other things to add looking great in our garden at the moment without protection - black and green mondo grass, Hart's toungue Fern, deer ferns, rhododendron sinogrande, hardy gardenias, hardy Scheffleras, cast iron plant, leopard plant, horsetail rush, Louquat and for fatsia both spiders web and camo proven hardy as well as the vining varieties.

I live on the edge of The Fens (cold and windswept) and have found Mahonia 'Soft Caress' does particularly well!

Will give these a try.

Thanks for this, it's good to know.

I lost my tree fern, cordylions and a princeps this year so this is really helpful. The trachycarpus is in full flower though! That palm would survive a nuclear winter I think!

Yeah, I definitely need to focus more on the very hardy plants! It went down to -9C in my garden (although the killer was probably just that it was below freezing for so long) and it took out a lot of plants. I am also rubbish at protecting plants. I did my best, but my red bananas are going mouldy and the musa trunks are mush (at least they will regrow from the roots). Only ones I protected just fine were the Sago Palms. But those are in pots and "just" got popped inside (I say 'just' because one is extremely heavy). So seeing this list I'm thinking I will invest in more Fargesia Bamboos. Thanks for the recommendations on which ones to get! And more Fatsia Japonica. I have a very sick one in my house right now. It's suffering from spider mites (and I had one last year in the garden that got spider mites too - it was just so dry!). Garden backbone planting of Trachys, bamboos and Fatsias, and then if the Cordylines and Phormiums suffer with the low temperatures and need to regrow, it won't be too much of an issue. Right now, I'm not happy with the gap left by the Red Cordyline, which was my largest Cordy, and the green ones... we will see if there will be gaps or not, currently 'inconclusive'. But next year maybe even they would get cut back to the ground, so best not rely on them! I thought looking around at gardens in my area, it would be fine for planting Cordylines, but... I've only lived here 4 years, so maybe in this area of the country they all go to mush every 10 years, and what I was seeing was 10 year old huge Cordylines... but... maybe at their peak. We will see!

My small trachycarpus fortunei spear-pulled last week,one died,my larger one is ok

Love the Eucs. We grow many species her eon our Gulf Islands off of the Pacific Coast of Canada. We had our 100'ft Mountain Gums cut down last year

Trying Photinia 'Pink Crispy' this year as saw it in B&Q. Very exotic leaves and hopefully as hardy as the standard Red Robin

What is more important for hardy palm trees to overcome harsh cold winters is it short -10 C and lower periods at night or a constant frost during the week? And Another thing hardy palm tree that is big and with a well-established trunk supposedly gained a higher level of hardiness.

Eucalyptus pauciflora is a "monster" that can reach 22 meters in height, so it has its place in large gardens !

Greetings from the Netherlands!

Good morning Kris, just been binge-watching your old videos(GREAT when you can sleep after 5am). QUESTION: Di you find a better peat-free seed compost, after the disaster you had last year with Sylva grow? I'm about to start sowing some seeds and banana seeds, but want to make sure I have the best compost. (I just had Sylva grow delivered and am holiding off using it).

Every tropical style garden needs Fargesia bamboo 😉 Have you grown Fargesia Jiuzhaigou (red stem)? One of my favourites!

My corylines have gone mushy, proper gutted. Cheshire England

No cordylines on your list ? Otherwise spot on