Dahlia Growing Cut and Come Again or Single Bloom
Summer-flowering bulbs provide some of the biggest, all-time and most exotic-looking blooms, and spring is the all-time time to plant them. Not only practise they look fabled growing in borders or containers, but many brand wonderful cut flowers likewise, so yous can also enjoy freshly-picked blooms in your home.
You'll ofttimes discover these beauties gear up-grown and in full bloom at the garden centre during summer, but this is the most expensive style to purchase them. With a small amount of early on planning you can hands grow them yourself, setting your garden up to be a colourful haven at a fraction of the toll.
And so, if you're itching to go out in the garden or even just to commencement planning your glorious summertime of colour, you'll exist pleased to know that now is a great time to start.
How to grow summertime-flowering bulbs
You don't have to be an proficient to enjoy summertime-flowering bulbs. Hither are some top growing tips:
- Your bulbs will be sent to yous at the perfect fourth dimension to plant them. When they go far, soak them in a saucepan or tray of water. Doing this will wake them up and give them a good get-go when planted;
- Plant frost tender bulbs or tubers, as per their instructions, in large 12in pots with a good quality multipurpose compost. Water them thoroughly and get out them in a bright, frost-free place to abound (a greenhouse, polytunnel or conservatory is ideal). In one case shoots and leaves begin to emerge, water whenever the soil dries out. In late May, or after adventure of frost has passed, the bulbs can be planted out into the garden. H2o them regularly throughout summer. Just before the showtime frosts, cut back the erstwhile growth right downward to the ground. Carefully dig up the bulbs, shake off backlog soil, and position in a shallow tray in a dry, frost free place for winter. Adjacent jump, found them again, repeating the process above;
- Hardy varieties, like crocosmia, gladiolus, lilies and polianthes, can be planted directly outdoors in leap. In the autumn, or afterward flowering, cut back all of the past season's growth down to basis level and go out them for winter – they'll grow back of their own accord the post-obit spring;
- Picking flowers and deadheading regularly encourages more abound, extending the flowering season.
The all-time summer-flowering bulbs
If you feel inspired plant summer-flowering bulbs, here's our pick of the 10 best to plant this spring:
Dahlias
You can't beat dahlias when it comes to impressive blooms. Choose from a vast assortment of vivid colours and types, including pompon, windmill, unmarried flowered, cactus flowered then many more.
Dahlias look dandy in any kind of planting scheme, suiting both traditional and contemporary gardens. Not only this, but they make brilliant cut flowers also, providing a continuous supply of astonishing flowers throughout summer – the more yous selection, the more than they keep coming!
Grow dahlias in total sunday or partial shade, in borders or large containers. Many are bee friendly.
Dahlia details:
- Elevation 40cm-1.5m Spread 40cm-80cm
- Plant in leap, flowers during summertime
- Bee-friendly flowers
- Suitable for cutting
- Suitable for borders
- Frost tender
Buy Dahlias →
Begonias
Best grown in pots and hanging baskets, brilliant-flowering begonias are generally compact or abaft. Producing repeat blooms all summer long, they're a super summertime institute and really pack a dial in bedding displays.
Begonias demand to be protected from frost, so found the bulbs in containers and outset them off in a greenhouse or conservatory. In late May, or one time run a risk of frost has passed, plant them out into the garden.
Nearly thrive in sun or shade, so they're particularly useful for adding bright blocks of colour to slow spaces. As with all container plants, they need regular watering throughout summer. Once the flowers have faded, dig up the tubers and shop for wintertime in a dry, frost-free identify fix to plant again the following jump.
Begonia details:
- Pinnacle 30cm-60cm Spread 30cm-60cm
- Found in jump, flowers during summer
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Frost tender
Buy Begonias →
Gladioli
Producing alpine stems packed with big, bright ruffled blooms, gladioli make a big impact in the border. They're also fantastic as cut flowers.
Despite their exotic looks, gladioli are fully hardy. Found them in close groups directly into borders during spring and go out them to it, they'll begin to flower from mid-summer onwards.
There's a huge choice of colours available, and their alpine flowering spikes fit well with both traditional and gimmicky planting schemes. They're all-time grown in mixed borders in full dominicus, just they can tolerate partial shade.
Gladiolus details:
- Top 80cm-1.5m Spread 30cm-60cm
- Plant in spring, flowers during summertime
- Suitable for cutting
- Suitable for borders
- Fully hardy
Purchase Gladioli →
Calla Lilies (Zantedeschia)
These exotic-looking lilies look brilliant in patio pots or narrow, raised beds. They class an attractive clump of lush foliage, topped with bold funnel-shaped flowers.
Suitable for growing in full sun or fractional shade, calla lilies are a peachy pick for smaller gardens or for growing in containers on patios or balconies. There's a great range of colours available, and with big, unproblematic flowers, they're perfect for contemporary styles.
Calla lilies aren't frost hardy then they demand to be brought inside to survive winter. They're a lovely, mod alternative to traditional summer bedding plants and actually piece of cake to abound.
Calla Lily details:
- Height 30cm-80m Spread 30cm-80m
- Plant in jump, flowers during summer
- Bee-friendly flowers
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Frost tender
Purchase Calla Lilies
Lilies
Lilies are one of the all-time summer bulbs to grow for fragrance and for use as cut flowers. Producing very big, exquisite flowers repeatedly throughout summer that also attract bees, it's no wonder they're so pop.
Lilies come in a wide range of shapes and sizes, varying from short varieties that grow to around 60cm, right up to tree lilies that can attain over 2m tall. Happy in containers, lilies are suitable whether your garden is large or small, growing well in full sun or partial shade.
Fully hardy, these excellent plants can be planted straight outside in jump. Tall varieties do require staking.
Lily details:
- Acme 60cm-2m Spread 30cm-60cm
- Institute in spring, flowers during summertime
- Bee-friendly flowers
- Suitable for cutting
- Fragrant flowers
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Fully hardy
Buy Lilies →
Peonies
With large, intricate and oft delicately fragrant blooms, peonies put on a bear witness-stopping operation in the garden. What'southward more than, they're fully hardy, so you can leave them in the ground during winter and enjoy their flowers every year.
Peonies are easy to grow and tolerate most soil types and aspects. To enjoy them to their fullest, put a support in place over the plant in jump before they get too alpine. This can be a set of canes with a mesh of twine webbed between them, or stakes which connect to round 'hats'. The stems will abound through the support and the leaf will cover information technology up so it doesn't testify, but almost chiefly, the large, heavy flower heads will stand tall and potent.
Peonies blossom from early summer onwards and they make excellent cut flowers. You but need a couple of these large blooms mixed with some foliage from the garden to make a really cute bouquet. Deadhead them regularly to extend the flowering season. In fall. After the foliage has turned chocolate-brown, cut back the onetime stems correct down to the ground.
Peony details:
- Height 60cm-1.2m Spread 60cm-ane.2m
- Plant in spring, flowers during summer
- Suitable for cutting
- Fragrant flowers
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Fully hardy
Purchase Peonies →
Crocosmias
Reliable, resilient and hardy crocosmias are so piece of cake to grow. They'll thrive well-nigh anywhere, exist it poor soil, drought, scorching hot sunday or shade. If you lot want effortless colour, it'due south hard to go incorrect with a crocosmia!
There are various crocosmias to choose from, all producing late-summer flowers in brilliant, peppery shades. Taller varieties, such every bit 'Lucifer' expect great planted in swathes or large groups in borders. Smaller varieties, such as 'Emily McKenzie' or 'Mistral' are useful for more bars spaces or narrow beds. These are the kind that grow naturally on grassy banks, they're also great for dry out, coastal or gravel gardens.
Crocosmias provide excellent tardily-summer colour that lasts well in to fall. They're great for combining with other late-summer perennials, such as echinacea, rudbeckia or nerines. After flowering, cut the flowering stems and foliage downwardly to ground level. They're fully hardy, so can exist left in the ground over winter.
Crocosmia details:
- Height 50cm-1.2m Spread 50cm-1.2m
- Plant in bound, flowers during summer
- Bee-friendly flowers
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Fully hardy
Buy Crocosmias →
Polianthes
If you like growing flowers to utilize in bouquets, wait no further than polianthes. Producing tall flowering spikes, they not only provide color, structure and fragrance in borders, but they make striking cutting flowers likewise.
Polianthes are fully hardy so they can be planted straight into the basis in spring. Flowering in the summer, they require very little maintenance throughout the season and naturalise over the years, producing more flowers each time.
Plant polianthes in sunny borders with rich, free-draining soil. The flowering stems achieve up to 80cm in top, then they're platonic for planting in groups in the eye of the border.
Polianthes details:
- Height 80cm Spread 80cm
- Institute in bound, flowers during summer
- Bee-friendly flowers
- Fragrant flowers
- Suitable for cutting
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Fully hardy
Purchase Polianthes →
Agapanthus
It'south easy to create an impressive, eye-catching display with agapanthus. With large, rounded blossom clusters in a higher place alpine, slender stems, they look fabulous in containers and as well have a long vase life when cut.
Whether your garden is large or pocket-size, a container filled with agapanthus creates a chic and contemporary expect. Flowering from mid-summer onwards, the late affluent of colour they provide extends the flavour just as many other plants are starting to fade.
This versatile institute is well suited to modernistic styles, but equally fitting in traditional or cottage-way planting schemes. Plant them in groups in full sun or fractional shade. They too concenter bees.
Agapanthus details:
- Summit 1m Spread 80cm
- Establish in spring, flowers during summer
- Bee-friendly flowers
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Fully hardy
Purchase Agapanthus →
Daylilies
This profuse flowerer provides high-impact color with continuous blooms that are produced daily throughout summer.
Daylilies, botanically known as hemerocallis, are easy to grow and fully hardy. Thriving in full sun and with excellent drought tolerance, they're brilliant for sunny mixed borders or large containers.
Daylilies can be planted straight outdoors in jump. They're hardy so at that place's no need to elevator them in the winter, just cut back the faded foliage at the terminate of the season and they'll grow back the following summer. They're happy in most soil types, but they do prefer full sun.
Daylily details:
- Height 80cm Spread 80cm
- Constitute in spring, flowers during summer
- Fragrant flowers
- Suitable for pots and borders
- Fully hardy
Buy Daylilies →
Source: https://www.farmergracy.co.uk/blogs/farmer-gracys-blog/top-10-summer-flowering-bulbs-for-spring-planting