Check Here Before Buying – Pot Size Matters...Not all websites offer the same. Plants in a 2-litre pot have twice the root system of a P9 or 1 litre pot.

 

Check Here Before Buying – Pot Size Matters...Not all websites offer the same. Plants in a 2 litre pot have twice the root system of a P9 or 1 litre pot.

Companion Plants for Spring Bulbs

Combining bulbs with companion plants is a great way to keep up the display and interest as your bulbs start to fade. Choose companion plants with similar growing condition preferences as your bulbs. Perennials that are short when bulbs are in bloom work well so as not to block the view and by choosing perennials that don’t need to be lifted and divided often, you’ll avoid having the disrupt the bulbs every few years.

We’re broken down below our pick of the best perennials to combine with your spring bulbs in different conditions:

 

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Spring Bulb Companions for Hot, Dry Conditions in Full Sun

  • Nepeta x faassenii (Catmint) – beautiful lavender blue flowers from early summer emerging from mid green aromatic leaves. Has a rather lax form, so will spread itself to cover its allotted space. Cats love Nepeta and tend to roll around on it, rubbing themselves against the plant. Also highly attractive to bees.
  • Coreopsis 'Creme Brulee' (Threadleaf Tickseed) - large, deep yellow flowers float above mid-green foliage, creating a bright display throughout summer and early autumn. Flowers also appear lower down the stems, creating a full appearance. Perfect for growing in containers, they are also attractive to butterflies, and make excellent cut flowers.

 

Coreopsis Creme Brulee

 

  • Geranium Plants – these are reliable stalwarts of the flower garden, not to be confused with the annual summer bedding and basket geraniums (Pelargoniums). Hardy geraniums are renowned for adding colour and beauty to the garden from late summer through early autumn, just as many other flowers are starting to fade. They produce masses of beautiful, saucer-shaped flowers, often with distinctive veins and sometimes a block of contrasting colour in the centre.

 

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  • Garden Phlox Perennials – Phlox are slender, showy, long-blooming perennials producing beautiful clouds of billowy star-shaped blooms from July right through to September. There are varieties with flowers in almost every colour on the spectrum, including rare shades of blue. Phlox have been a mainstay of the summer garden since colonial times, working well in the cottage garden, mass plantings, meadow gardens, cut flower beds or even containers.
  • Echinops ritro (Globe Thistle) - stunning, ornamental, vivid midnight-blue flower heads are produced on tall, upright, branched stems repeatedly from August to September. This is a handsome globe thistle with a clump-forming growth habit and deeply-lobed, thistle-like, glossy dark green leaves which are spine-tipped at the edges and have cobweb-like markings on top.

 

Echinops blue flowers

 

  • Peony plants - luxurious, eye-catching herbaceous perennials producing magnificent, large fluffy flowers in colours spanning reds, coral pinks, whites, maroon browns and yellows from mid-spring into early summer. They produce more flowers as they mature with their ruffled blooms changing colour as they open, bringing fabulous fragrances to the garden from sweet to citrus and even slightly spicy tones.
  • Veronica (Speedwell) - tough, low-maintenance, long-lived, carefree perennials, ranging from low-growing, mat-forming varieties to upright specimens with flower spikes reaching over a metre tall. Their long, compact, sometimes wavy spikes of saucer-shaped flowers are produced in soft shades of pink, purple, blue and white above green, gold or silvery foliage.

 

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  • Sedum plants - beautiful, perennial succulents, producing masses of star-shaped flowers in shades of reds, pinks, whites and yellows through summer and autumn, above an attractive mound of thick leaves and fleshy stems. Split into mat-forming varieties, reaching 15-20cm high and perfect for the rock garden, ground cover or gracefully cascading down a stone wall; and upright sedums that develop into tall clumps, ideal for the flower garden or mixed border.
  • Thyme Herbs - a versatile, evergreen perennial herb with distinctive, aromatic foliage in a range of colours and long-lasting, white, pink or lilac-coloured flowers in the summer. It can be grown in the herb garden, patio containers, on a windowsill, gravel garden or even cracks in paving. Thyme require full sun and a free-draining soil - originating from the Mediterranean, they prefer a low nutrient soil with minimal moisture.

 

Thyme purple flowers

 

Spring Bulb Companions for Moist Soil

  • Bergenia - evergreen perennials with wonderful, large cabbage-like leaves producing erect clusters of bell-shaped flowers in spring. The blooms are produced on stalks 25-30cm high in shades of reds, whites and pinky-purples. Commonly known as pig speak for the sound it makes when two leaves are rubbed together, Bergenias are perfect for brightening up a shady or dappled spot in the border as an alternative to hostas.
  • Brunnera ‘Looking Glass’ - large, heart-shaped leaves appear in spring with the most beautiful silver dusting on them. 'Looking Glass' silver dusting is much denser than 'Jack Frost', often with very little leaf veins showing through. These are closely followed by sprays of tiny, light blue flowers. For the best variegation, a sheltered site is essential.

Brunnera Looking Glass

 

  • Heuchera (Coral Bells) - versatile, evergreen or semi-evergreen perennials grown for their interesting, colourful foliage in a variety of vibrant shades. There is a wide selection of varieties, some with a single foliage colour, sometimes with ruffled edges to the leaves, whilst others are two-toned with a bold distinctive blotch of contrasting colour in the centre of each leaf.

 

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  • Hemerocallis (Daylily) – reliable, bold perennials producing a generous display of lily-like flowers in fiery shades of yellow, burgundy-reds and oranges in summer. Their large blooms are great for making a statement, borne on tall stems often with bold coloured throats or ruffled edges, high above an attractive, clump-forming mass of lush, strap-like foliage. Each flower typically lasts no more than 24 hours, often replaced by another one from the same flower stalk the next day.
  • Acorus gramineus 'Ogon' (Sweet Flag) - a compact, semi-evergreen grass with tall, sword shaped leaves which are vibrant bold creamy yellow with rich green variegated stripes. This showy foliage is excellent for brightening up darker areas or surrounding a water feature where soil is constantly wet.
  • Tricyrtis hirta (Toad lily) - unique perennial perfect for adding a touch of the exotic to any shady area of your garden. The star-like blossoms are white with rich purple spots and purple stigmas, closely resembling a lily and are best appreciated up close. It is sometimes known as hairy toad lily due to all parts of this plant being hairy, including its lance-shaped, pale green leaves.

 

Tricyrtis-hirta-empress

 

Spring Bulb Companions for Shade

  • Lamprocapnos spectabilis (Bleeding Heart) - beautiful delicate 'bleeding heart' shaped rose-red flowers tipped white dangle from arching stems in early summer. Delicate mid-green fern like foliage. An intriguing AGM award winner from Eastern Asia and Japan.
  • Aquilegia (Columbine) - charming, old-fashioned stalwart of the cottage garden, producing clouds of bonnet-shaped flowers above lacy foliage from late spring into the summer. Thriving in sun or partial shade, these clump-forming herbaceous perennials are highly effective for adding a naturalistic appearance amongst shrubs and roses and particularly useful for filling the void between a spring bulb display and the first summer flowers.

 

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  • Hemerocallis (Daylily) – reliable, bold perennials producing a generous display of lily-like flowers in fiery shades of yellow, burgundy-reds and oranges in summer. Their large blooms are great for making a statement, borne on tall stems often with bold coloured throats or ruffled edges, high above an attractive, clump-forming mass of lush, strap-like foliage. Each flower typically lasts no more than 24 hours, often replaced by another one from the same flower stalk the next day.
  • Hosta plants - popular and distinctive, shade-loving perennials with large, lush tropical foliage that makes a beautiful addition to any garden. Robust, easy to grow and long-lived, they go dormant over the winter before bursting into life from new shoots each spring. Hostas produce summer flowers held on spikes high above the foliage in shades of mauve through to white.

 

Hosta plants

 

  • Alchemilla Mollis (Lady's Mantle) - decorative clump forming ground cover perennial. Attractive sprays of tiny yellow flowers in mid summer appear as a mass of colour. Rounded pale green deciduous leaves that have a pretty crinkled edge that catch gentle rain and early morning dew. Perfect for planting en-masse and tolerant of adverse conditions and once established is drought tolerant. Cut back faded flower heads in August to encourage a second flush of flowers.
  • Convallaria majalis (Lily of the Valley) - beautiful, spring flowering deciduous bulb with arching racemes of small, pendent, sweetly scented white flowers. These are perfect for adding charm to any spring garden setting and are set off beautifully against a backdrop of long, luxurious dark green leaves. Also works well in the woodland garden or to provide an attractive ground cover.

 

Convallaria majalis

 

  • Pulmonaria rubra (Lungwort) - one of the earliest flowering Pulmonarias, providing vital colour and interest to your garden from late winter through to early spring. Light green leaves and short stems bear clusters of coral-red flowers. An excellent addition to any woodland or wildlife garden, Pulmonaria rubra thrives in shady spots and makes a good ground cover plant for underneath trees and shrubs.
  • Vinca (Periwinkle) - highly regarded, low-growing ground cover plants for sun or shade producing beautiful solitary violet, purple-blue or white flowers all summer long. They have a low growing habit with lance-shaped, dark green leaves, making them well suited for under-planting below trees to cover ground that may otherwise lie bare.

 

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