Monty Don gives advice on planting bulbs in layers
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The temperature is getting milder and the sunset is getting later every day: make no mistake, spring is on the way. As the weather improves, this is also the perfect time to get planning your summer garden. Spring flowers should already be planted, but now is the time to plant summer flowering bulbs and think about when everything will come into bloom later in the year. Here’s your guide to the best summer flowering bulbs to plant in the UK.
Gardeners who remembered to get their bulbs down back in November and December will soon be rewarded with a garden full of vibrant daffodils and tulips.
However, if you would like to have flowers into the summer, it’s almost time to plant summer flowering bulbs.
Summer flowering bulbs include allium, gladioli, crocosmia and dahlias.
For these summer flowering bulbs, you should wait until the average temperature is around 13 degrees.
You should also make sure there’s no longer a risk of frost, so your safest bet is holding off until around mid-March or later to get planting your summer bulbs – depending on where in the UK you live.
These are six of the best summer-flowering bulbs to plant in a British garden.
1 – Dahlias
A dramatic display with their voluptuous round heads, dahlias produce amazing flowers right the way through summer.
Dahlias tend to prefer being in full sun or partial shade and can be grown in pots as well as along your borders.
2 – Begonias
A slightly more sensitive bulb, wait to plant Begonias until May when the temperature is a bit warmer.
Colourful begonias can thrive in the shade, so make a lovely addition to any dull areas of your garden, and are perfect for hanging baskets.
3 – Gladioli
These tall and stunning plants produce gorgeous colourful flowers when they’re planted in an area with plenty of sun.
A hardier bulb, these can be planted in early spring and left alone until their flowers appear in summer.
4 – Peonies
One of Britain’s best-loved flowers, peony bulbs are hardy enough to be left in the ground all year round, producing flowers year after year.
Though peonies are easy to grow, they may need a support cane for their stem when you plant them.
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5 – Crocosmias
Crocosmias will inject cheerful colours into your garden display well into the later summer months and the autumn.
You can plant crocosmias from now onwards, but check the variety as some bulbs may have different planting preferences.
6 – Agapanthus
For an impressive display of gorgeous blue clusters of flowers, you can’t beat agapanthus.
Agapanthus will thrive in a border or planted in a container.
This plant flowers a little later into summer too, meaning your display will last even longer.
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