As gardeners Spring and Autumn tend to be our busiest times, but do we ever really rest on our laurels?
Just like retailers at Christmas the ending of a season gets me thinking about what I would like out of my garden 12 months from now. June and July is the perfect time to start to think about sowing biennials for late spring and early summer colour. Here’s my top five easy biennials to sow in June and July for next year.
Foxglove
Often known as an English Cottage Garden staple and can be seen growing wild from late spring, this flowering biennial, or short-lived perennial is one of the most easiest to grow from seed. It's not fussy over soil conditions and will thrive in full sun or partial shade and you can scatter straight into borders for a low maintenance approach or sow into trays ready for pricking and planting in early Autumn for a more specific placement. Due to their rise in popularity, foxgloves can now also come in various arrays of colour.
Angelica
Known as a herb and is part of the Parsley family, Angelica is a wonderful structural edition to any garden. It comes in variety of sizes and is great as a cut flower. In its first year it has deep red foliage that looks great in any border. The following year long purple steps support large bunches of tiny purple flowers.
Dianthus (Sweet WillIam)
Sweet William is another cottage garden favourite. Sow now and plant out in Autumn for nonstop spring and summer colour for both pots and borders. They love full sun, do best in well-drained soil and come in a variety of colours. They're also great as a cut flower for adding some early spring colour to vases.
Aquilegias
Again another a short-lived perennial, Aquilegia can be treated as a biennial and seeds can be sown in July and August for flowers the following spring. They're a great flower for a partially shaded spot so do well in a North facing garden or under the dappled shade of a large tree or shrub. They again make fabulous cut flowers and will reward you with more blooms when cut. You'll also find they will self-seed themselves year after year around your garden.
Teasels
This biennial just keeps on giving, it's great for wildlife, self seeds once established and looks great cut fresh or left to dry to provide interest and structure through winter in either the border or vase. I have also often used teasels in Autumn wreaths and Christmas displays as it performs so well as a dried flower.
Comments