Most gardens do not have smooth, flat lawns and borders of rich, easily dug soil.

We have to put up with damp, sunless corridors between houses, awkward slopes or plots shaded by trees or neighbouring buildings.

Equally difficult to plant are seaside gardens exposed to gale-force winds and salt spray; waterlogged plots, where the drainage is poor; and dry ground exposed to the glare of the sun day after day, without the slightest shade.

In short, few gardens benefit from perfect conditions.

What you need for these sites are tough plants that will not only shrug off all the worst conditions in your garden but will actually thrive in them. Tough Plants for Tough Places includes a directory of nearly 100 plants that are practically invincible in the specific hostile conditions they have evolved to cope with.