Why not try your own spring flowering annuals and perennials?

• Plant seeds or buy ‘pots of colour’ for an instant effect – these are readily available in a range of plant varieties in early spring from your local nursery.

• Sow seeds of your favourite annuals in trays in early spring and transplant into your boxes or containers once they are strongly growing and have at least two sets of leaves. Try these spring flowering annuals: Alyssum – in white and pink, easy care and tough.

Annual Asters – lovely flowers in a huge range of colours.

California poppies (Escholtzia) – cream

and yellow.

Dianthus – (scented) white, pinks and red.

Corn flowers (Bachelor’s Buttons) – who would be without these little stunners – a range of colours from white, blue, purple, magenta and many more.

Gerberas – tough plants in a range of flower colours from yellow and orange through to pinks, reds and blues. Lupins – yellows, white.

Nasturtiums – orange and yellow Nemophila – blue flowers with a white

centre.

Petunias – a range of colours for this popular annual.

Straw Flowers – pinks and whites. Violas – in blues and white.

Mix these with some spring flowering perennials:

Aquilegias (Granny’s Bonnet) – lovely flowers in a range of colours.

Bulbs – such as daffodils, tulips, grape hyacinths, bluebells and dwarf irises – these need to be planted in autumn though or you can buy flowering pots for an instant effect.

Dianthus – (perennial pinks with scented blooms) in pinks through to red but also white.

Salvias – they come in such a broad range of colour some are small others will grow too large for a pot. They are heat tolerant in most cases and by choosing carefully you can grow these in containers. Look out for suitable cultivars at your local nursery.

Other spring flowering perennials worth trying are Fuchsias (for a shady position). Why not try a mix of annuals and perennials e.g. ornamental kale, grasses (such as Carex) and a flowering annual such as verbena.