Plant up some slot-in pots for gap fillers, says Nick Bailey
They’ll provide you with cheap yet gorgeous gap fillers later in the year
No matter how carefully we plan our gardens, there are always moments through the year when certain spots could do with a boost. A splash of colour here or a dash of scent there can be all the garden needs to keep the interest up. Some gardeners address this later in the season by buying expensive pre-grown pots of dahlias, lilies, gladiolus or other floriferous species, which can be planted directly into bare patches in beds and borders where they instantly plug a gap. But there’s another, distinctly less expensive, way of doing this.
Planting up basic plastic pots with select bulbs and tubers over the next few weeks will give you a reserve stock of pre-grown plants which can be slotted into lacklustre borders at a moment’s notice. I’ve been doing this in my garden, and those I’ve managed, for more than 20 years. It’s inexpensive, easy to do and very rewarding. All you’ll need are some 10-litre plastic pots, compost and canes or pea sticks. Then simply plant your selected bulbs or tubers in peat-free compost at the recommended depth, firm them in and add pea sticks or canes to support the plants as they grow.
Initially, they’re best started in a cool glasshouse or cold frame but once the worst of the weather has passed they can be moved to a sheltered spot to grow on ready for when they’re called up for duty in July, August or September. There are certain plants I turn to time and again to be grown this way and
Lilium regale is one of the best. Planted now it’ll produce long, white, heavily-scented trumpets by midsummer and can be plunged into dull or scentless spots in a flash. Next are
Gladiolus callianthus and Galtonia candicans. The glad is very easy to grow and pots will bloom from August to October, whereas the giant white snowdrop flowers of galtonia appear in midsummer.
Both are tall and upright, making them perfect for the pre-grown potted treatment. Finally, dahlias. There are hundreds to choose from but here are three of my favourites. ‘Crème de Cassis’ makes for a stocky plant of 80cm (2ft 8in) or so with white petals suffused with deep pink and backed in cassis purple. ‘Happy Days Neon’ is a compact, dark-skinned plant reaching only 40cm (1ft 4in) but producing radiant coral, yellow and pink blooms. In contrast, ‘Café au Lait’ is a much subtler creature with flowers the colour of a very weak latte. It reaches 90cm (3ft) and works as a balancer to late-flowering daisies. So try planting up some slot-in pots, you won’t regret it!