Getting the most from your garden or allotment means keeping a respectable stock of flowering plants. These will not only to help the place look nice and smell wonderful; they’ll also help to attract insect predators, which will act as a natural form of pest control.
You’ll want to select your flowers according to the time of year. Different varieties will thrive depending on the weather conditions. Let’s take a tour through the seasons, and see if we can draw your attention to some favourites to make your garden more colourful.
Spring
During springtime, bright and colourful plants tend to be favoured. On top of everything else, these kinds of flowers will help you to get into the right mindset after a few dreary months of planning and preparation.
Marigolds
Sow marigolds in March, and they’ll arrive in time for summer. You don’t need to plant them deep – around an inch and a half should do it. One of the great things about this colourful plant is that the petals are edible. Use them for garnishing.
Dahlias
Dahlias are impressive and showy, but they’re vulnerable to frost. Keep them under glass, or in a container, and then bring them outdoors during late Spring.
Primrose
Primrose is a little bit demanding, but the results are worthwhile. Sow them in a tray, keep it in the fridge, and then keep the seedlings in controlled conditions until September.
Summer
During summer, you can ramp things up a little further in time for blooming in autumn.
Forget-me-nots
Forget-me-nots are pretty forgiving. You can sow them directly into the soil when July rolls around.
Pansies
Again, pansies can be sown in early July. That way, you’ll get wonderful blooms the following Spring. Use peat-free compost for best results.
Poppies
Poppies are short-lived, but they tend to require minimal maintenance, and they are beautiful to look at.
Autumn
During autumn, you’ll want to take steps to protect your more delicate plants, ideally with the help of a greenhouse or a polytunnel in your garden.
Tulips
Tulips come with large bulbs, and will interplant nicely with hardy annuals. This way, you’ll get a respectable flowerbed all year round – but it’ll really come to life when the tulips themselves are in bloom.
Daffodils
The same applies to daffodils. They don’t bloom for very long, but they’re extremely low-maintenance. Get them into the soil and watch them thrive.
Hyacinths
Hyacinths tend to interplant well with pansies in particular. Look for a sunny patch, where the soil is nicely moist, but well-drained, too.
Winter
Generally speaking, winter is a month where you’ll do very little in the garden. This will give you the chance to plant a few particular flowers, like cyclamen, Laurentia, begonias and bare-root roses.
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