12 February 2025
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Your plant recommendations from expert plantsman, Michael.
Happy New Year to you all . Now , I ’d unremarkably be the type to shy away from trends articles so please see this more as a accumulation of my freshest approximation , all inspired by my 2023 travel and numberless enjoyable conversations with breeders , growers and consumers at outcome and baby’s room across Europe .
More resilient bedding plants
The perception of have it off is changing . breeder are starting to recognise our changing needs when it come to filling our borders with long - lasting colouring material . Those neat little soldier - similar plants of times gone are being replaced by more open , forked specimens- with plenty more bloom and perimeter presence . commend , the more soil you cover , the less opportunity you ’ll have weeds to deal with and watering requirements can be lessened !
It ’s also possible for bedding plant to keep a range of pollinators happy too , with Calibrachoa and some of the fab new Cuphea taking the spark advance with their nectar rich blooming . There ’s absolutely no reasonableness why you ca n’t throw the definition of bedding on its head by using some of the perennial Coreopsis verticillata and long - blooming penstemons shuffle up with those marigold . Just think back you may leave them in the reason after flowering , and they ’ll honor you with a grateful stave two the year after !
Houseplant identity crisis
I love experimenting and over the preceding few years , I ’ve been planting up some very different containers for my summertime patio . I ’ve looked outside the patio plantation owner isles when it comes to choosing my specimen and might easily select some cosmetic green goddess , a perennial or two , or even be proper racy and add a few houseplant into the mix .
Actually if you glance back at pictures of Victorian bedding mixes , there were often wanderer plants Chlorophytum used alongside rainbow begonias . I ’ve been taking this a degree further by mixing Tradescantia into my patio kitty , a few Philodendron scandens into window boxes and a few Crotons ( Codieaum ) with my potentiometer Dahlia pinnata !
Venus fly trap
Thanks to a very gamy profile television advert ( with go with promo soft miniature ) during December , sales of Venus fly cakehole plants have increased hugely . The ideal time to invest in one of these fascinating plants will be during the spring , as plant take back to their growing season . It ’s a really fun windowsill plant , which can enlist adults and nipper alike .
Venus fly traps can also be grown outdoors during the summertime , although you ’ll also find potpourri which are sturdy . Just do n’t panic when they disappear underground each winter – who can blame them after all ?
No water pots & baskets
Whether you ’re trying to be more sustainable , or you ’re just a bit slothful ( or very busy ) when it comes to broken - water maintenance summer pot plants , there are plenty to choose from .
The many Sedum cultivar have glorious shaggy-coated ontogenesis and are idealistic for container or hanging baskets . Mix them up with fellow drought - audacious Osteospermum and you’re able to create a very colourful , undemanding display .
Think about table - top displays too , a gloomy lulu of Echeveria and Pachyphytum is fun , colorful and wo n’t need a dip of body of water all summer !
Planting by numbers
Are we getting lazier as nurseryman , or simply better at evolve ways to tempt newbies ? Across the industry , growers are starting to free ‘ multi - establish potted plants ’ , with three tight - planted specimens in one container . Perhaps the most popular is the ‘ Trixi ’ serial from Selecta in Germany , where delightfully colour - coordinate mixes bring together Calibrachoa , Verbena and petunias – it really is like planting by numbers .
‘ Peach Fuzz ’
lastly , there ’s been a buzz about the Pantone Colour of the Year for 2023 , which has just been released . ‘ Peach Fuzz ’ is the choose chromaticity . However , I ca n’t help feeling that Pantone is behind the curve here , as nurseryman have been enjoying peachy and apricot tones over the past few class , thanks to the revival of dahlias , fresh breeding in cosmos , and the cover triumph of tulips . A versatile tint , peach fuzz could be blend in with similar pastel quality , or jazzed up with unattackable purples and garden pink . It ’s time to get your blusher corner out , the great unwashed !
