Just because the weather is dark, wet, and miserable, it doesn’t mean your garden must follow suit. The weather might be rubbish with plenty of rain and chilly autumnal temperatures, but if you introduce some colourful winter bedding plants into your garden, you can look forward to gazing out on a riot of colour.
Everyone recognises summer bedding plants. The supermarkets are usually full of Fuchsias, Pansies, and other brightly coloured bedding plants. They look gorgeous and turn any garden into a kaleidoscope of colour during the summer months. Unfortunately, by late September, these pretty plants are starting to fade, so now is the time to start thinking about replacing them with a new selection of bedding plants. Luckily, here at Carpenter’s Nursery, we have lots of choose from!
Popular Winter Bedding Plants
Many of our old summer favourites don’t like the cold weather, so they are not suitable for winter gardens, but we have some great options for you.
- Pansies are the easiest winter bedding plant to look after. You don’t need any special soil conditions for Pansies to thrive. So long as you water your Pansies regularly and remove dead flowers, they will continue to bloom all through the winter. With so many vibrant colour combinations to choose from, Pansies get our vote every time.
- Violas are the smaller cousin of bright and cheerful Pansies. Viola flowers are smaller and more delicate than a Pansy, but despite their small stature, they are no less pretty.
- Cyclamen are also a good choice for a winter garden. They look pretty in clumps, containers and hanging baskets. Don’t dismiss Polyanthus, too. Available in bright colours, the sight of Polyanthus will lift your spirits on the coldest of days. Other plants worth considering include Forget-Me-Not, Sweet Williams, Wallflowers, Bellis, and Stocks.
- If you have a cottage garden, check out Primrose. This traditional winter bedding plant is actually a perennial, so once you have popped a few in your borders, they will keep coming back year after year.
- Heather is another excellent choice for winter gardens. Heather is available in various shades of cream, blue, pink, and purple.
Containers and Hanging Baskets
All winter bedding plants are suitable for borders and beds, but if you have a small garden or you want to add colour to other areas, now is a good time to start planting up containers and hanging baskets.
Choose from a selection of different designs or make your own containers out of unwanted pallets or timber. Line your baskets or containers and add compost. Winter bedding plants are happy in some good quality, all-purpose compost.
Bold, Bright, and Beautiful!
Be bold with colour choices and group similar plants together in clusters of three, five, seven, or more. When planting up hanging baskets, plant taller plants such as Polyanthus in the middle, surrounded by Pansies and Violas, which will grow out and down.
Now is the best time to plant winter bedding, as the evenings are still relatively light. A mass of colourful winter bedding plants will ensure your garden gets noticed over the winter, but if you need any planting advice, ask one of the team at Carpenter’s Nursery.
