Border control
added to the soil – and the tried and tested beer traps and copper rings.
The bigger delphs will need staking. Plant size can range from small to tall so choose accordingly if you don’t want the fuss of staking.
You can use steel ring hoops, bamboo canes or twigs from the garden as support.
Don’t tie in too tightly – allow for some gentle sway in the breeze so that the stems don’t snap.
When your plants mature over a few years, you can start to thin out the flower spikes. This is optional – it’s only if you want the plant to focus its energy on producing some spectacular spikes.
Either way, cut back after flowering and you will likely get a second, smaller flush of flowers in September.
The easiest way to propagate is by taking basal cuttings in spring. This is just snapping off a new shoot at the base of the plant – remove lower leaves and insert in cutting compost.
You can also grow from seed early in the year.
As your plant matures over a few years, you can lift and divide.
They’re wonderful at the back or middle of the border, bringing an explosion of vertical colour.
Other plants which perform a similar function are foxgloves, eremurus, hollyhock and some of the tall campanulas. But they’re also gorgeous scattered randomly, the classic cottage garden plant. And they make the best cut flower.
Their colour palette ranges from white and cream to light and dark blues, as well as some pinks and mauves. My favourites include ‘Black Knight,’ which is a deep dark blue, while ‘Blue Dawn’ is a beautiful sky blue colour with a black eye at its centre and reaches up to 5ft 6ins so needs staking.
‘Blue Nile’ is another stunner in a piercing blue with a white eye. For purists, Constance Rivett has white blooms with a white eye.
For the full range, check out Blackmore and Langdon’s, the Bathbased nurseries which are the specialists.
The firm has exhibited at the Chelsea Flower Show since its inauguration way back in 1913, and their stand is always magnificent.
Call 01275 332300 or visit the website at blackmore-langdon.com