Fifty perfect plants for lazy gardeners
For ease and speed of growing, here’s our round-up of the best of the bunch
Create a vibrant mix of lowmaintenance perennials, bulbs and evergreens in borders for interest throughout the year.
1 Echinacea
Insects love this nectar-rich plant. The pink variety is the pick for lazy gardeners, whereas the orange and yellow shades can be troublesome. This likes well-drained soil and sun.
2 Swamp lily
A spectacular bulb with tall stems and pale-pink, fragrant flowerheads. Leave it alone and it will get better every year. Plant in full sun.
3 Geranium Rozanne
Any geranium variety is perfect for lazy gardeners, but this is particularly impressive with large flowers which form a sea of blue.
4 Japanese anemone
Once established – which can take a while initially – this tough perennial will get by without any attention from you. Likes any soil type in sun or partial shade.
5 Heuchera
This is called evergreen, but is so much more than just that. Choose from dozens in shades of purple, silver, brown and green. They work well mixed with ground cover, and will grow well all year round. Plant in partial shade or in a sunny spot in the garden.
6 Hosta
If you can keep slugs at bay, then this large-leaved hardy perennial can be left to thrive in a shady spot. There are a wealth of varieties, all of which will provide bountiful foliage in your borders. Give plants some feeding if you’re growing them in a pot.
Bring colour to the garden fast with these cheap-to-buy plants!
13 Nasturtium
A real favourite with kids, the leaves and flowers are edible, with a hot peppery taste.
14 Cosmos
Showy blooms fill in gaps, and it makes great cut flowers. It’s tall enough for annual hedging, too.
15 Calendula
English marigolds come in a wide range of shades, and grow anywhere, but the flowers prefer cooler conditions, so partial shade is preferable.
No matter how small your outdoor space, you probably have room for a few pots. These alpine-style plants will thrive in well-drained soil and some sun.
7 Campanula poscharskyana
This spreads along gaps in brickwork and paving. The pretty purple flowers will cover a wall if left alone to sprawl.
8 Arabis
Neat and low, this evergreen makes a blanket of foliage with white or pink flowers in late spring. It can tolerate dry conditions, so will survive summer temperatures well. Also grows in full sun with dry soil.
9 Primula auricula
Clusters of intricately-coloured flowers come alive in springtime, giving off a lovely fragrance. Enjoys well- drained soil and full sun.
10 Sempervivum
With spiral rosettes in green, purple or burgundy red, this succulent is hardy, so is suitable for outdoor planting in pots or sunny beds. It’s droughttolerant, too, so should prove very low-maintenance.
11 Dianthus
These rockery pinks generally only flower once in early summer, but hybrid variety Allwoodii blooms throughout summer. Plant in dry soil in full sun.
12 Ajuga reptans
This neat creeping plant does best in light shade and displays delicate blue flowers in spring. Low-growing, it reaches heights of around 20cm. Dislikes hot, dry conditions.
A simple way to add colour to the garden – pop the bulbs in the ground during autumn or buy budding versions in garden centres now.
20 Anemone blanda
Growing from unusual black tubers, they usually bloom into blue flowers, but also come in pink and white. Plant under shrubs in sun or partial shade.
21 Galanthus nivalis
One of the earliest spring risers, the double varieties of dainty snowdrops show up best.
22 Hyacinth ‘Ostara’
The deep-blue flowers form a highly fragrant colony. At its best in late March, this plant is long-lived.
23 Narcissus ‘Tête-à-tête’
The charming dwarf daffodil has one or two bright-yellow flowers on each stalk. It’s short of stature, so plant it at the front of borders.
24 Tulip ‘Red Riding Hood’
This popular tulip is one of the easiest to grow. Perfect for pots and window boxes, it lasts for many years with minimal effort from you.
Most edibles need care and attention, but some grow more easily than others. These quick growers are a good lowmaintenance choice.
16 Pak choi
Get your seeds ready to sow during summer from July. They grow really fast and are superb in stir-fries. Keep plants moist while they grow.
17 Radishes
These will grow in six weeks from when you sow them. They’re perfect for container growing, so plant them in pots of multipurpose compost. Sow from March to August.
18 Salad leaves
There’s a variety of seed mixes that can be sown in pots or straight into the ground. They grow well on a sunny windowsill and you’ll see results as little as six weeks after sowing. Cut leaves to encourage re-growth.
19 Bush tomatoes
Bush varieties don’t need to be trained up canes – you can grow them in a hanging basket or patio pot. Give a small amount of feed every week.
Shrubs add interest all year round and can provide structure to other planting.
29 Cordyline australis
Great for a tropical look, this plant is inexpensive and grows quickly. It also produces small, fragrant flowers and looks good all year round.
30 Hydrangea
Reliable, fast-growing and spectacular, the giant flowerheads spring up year after year. Prune back hard each year to help them grow.
31 Fatsia japonica
This imposing evergreen has large, glossy-fingered leaves for a lushly tropical effect.
32 Choisya ternata
This richly-foliaged plant has sweet-scented flowers and is good in windy, coastal gardens. Prune it in spring and summer for a great-looking shrub all year round.
33 Cornus alba
This wonderful plant has two very different phases – rich, variegated foliage followed by bright-red stems. Prune back in spring for year-round interest.
A lot of herbs are not only low-maintenance good growers, some can add green interest to a planting scheme. 25 Chives
You can grow chives from seed or buy the plants. They’re hardy and last for many years. They die down to the ground in winter, but new leaves appear in spring, and the flower buds can also be eaten.
26 Mint
This is such a prolific grower that you have to watch where you plant it or it will take over like a weed. Keep mint plants confined in pots and give them water, but they will eventually become drought-tolerant.
27 Rosemary
Find a sunny spot for this plant and, with a little pruning in late spring to cut back any leggy, sprawling growth, it will remain attractive and neat for many years to come.
28 Bay
Leaves can be used fresh or dried in cooking, and this tree needs no pruning at all. Plant it in sun in well-drained soil.
Herbaceous perennials take longer to flower and establish, but can be an inexpensive way of filling your borders. Many can be divided every spring to increase your stock and fill more areas of the garden.
39 Physostegia virginiana
This is the perfect plant for placing in a sunny border. Cut it back after flowering and you’ll get another flush of lovely upright blooms.
40 Iris sibirica
Siberian iris needs little attention once established, but has fine, glossy leaves and produces plenty of stunning purple flowers.
41 Kniphofia
Red-hot poker comes in a range of colours, and most will thrive best in full sun and rich soil.
42 Peony ‘Bowl of Beauty’
This is one of the showiest peonies of all. Plant it in full sun or partial shade and feed it every spring so clumps will last many years.
Climbers are invaluable for hiding an ugly feature and for trailing up walls, over arches, pergolas, obelisks and trellises. 34 Rose ‘Compassion’
Among the hundreds of climbing roses, this is a real star which continues to bloom all summer.
35 Clematis viticella
This can be pruned as hard as you like in late winter or spring. It produces masses of pretty, fragrant flowers in late summer.
36 Lathyrus latifolius
The everlasting sweet pea is easy to grow but, sadly, unscented. However, it’s perfect for growing through trellis and wire fences.
37 Ceanothus
This thrives in well-drained soil and a sunny spot. Plants grow quite quickly, so are ideal for impatient gardeners.
38 Lonicera japonica
The heady scent of honeysuckle is a true sign of summer. This one is evergreen and always attractive with fragrant flowers throughout summer.
All of these plants are wonderfully reliable in terms of summer flowering, meaning they will grace your garden with their spectacular blooms all season.
47 Dahlia
This will flower for months if you remove the dead flowers as you go. Plant it in full sun and give it plenty of water.
48 Allium cristophii
This hardy bulb should be planted in autumn. The globes of metallic lilac blooms will last for a whole month.
49 French marigold
These compact plants are unbeatable for summer colour. They grow quickly and flower non-stop with very little care needed to keep them going.
50 Petunia
In a range of colours, including bi-coloured styles, the petunia reigns supreme in sunny beds and pots, producing masses of trumpet-like flowers all summer.
Summer wouldn’t be the same without baskets, pots and window boxes packed with colour. These are the best and easiest plants for guaranteed colour for months.
43 Pelargonium
This colourful plant will thrive in full sun and withstand drought. It flowers all summer, and some have attractive leaves as well.
44 Fuchsia
This comes in many sizes, colours and shapes. Bush fuchsias are upright and great for displaying in pots. Plant them in light shade for the best results.
45 Spider plant
This popular, common houseplant is a wonderful, inexpensive choice for filling summer containers. Pop any spare plants in pots and hanging baskets.
46 Begonia
This is a great plant that enjoys partial shade, and there are lots of different types with flowers in an array of many different colours.