Bedding
Growing Cosmos in Pots Which cosmos varieties work best in containers, what size pot you need, how to plant, water, feed, and support them, and four planting schemes to try. Everything you need to grow cosmos well in pots, from a single Xanthos in a terracotta bowl to a full-height mixed planter.
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Garden Plants
Most clematis are deciduous, bare through winter and in flower for a few weeks in spring or summer. But three groups stay…
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Bulbs
Growing Bulbs in Pots and Containers If you have a patio, a balcony, a front step, or a windowsill, you should grow…
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Bulbs
Spring bulbs are among the most forgiving things you can grow. Horticultural experts agree that each brown, papery bulb contains everything it needs — roots, stems, leaves, and flowers packed into stored energy, waiting for the right soil temperature to burst into life. Your job, as experienced growers will tell you, is simply to get them into the ground at the right time and the right depth. Planting advice from specialists is consistent: most bulbs follow a simple rule of thumb — plant at a depth two to three times the height of the bulb itself. Tulips are the exception, with expert growers recommending a depth of 15–20cm to protect against disease and encourage them to return year after year. Timing matters too. Professional growers recommend September for daffodils, hyacinths, and crocus, and November for tulips — a delay that reduces the risk of fungal disease. But as even the most seasoned gardeners will admit, a bulb planted late is always better than one left in a bag. As the legendary plantsman Christopher Lloyd demonstrated across decades at Great Dixter, the most spectacular results often come from the simplest approach — bulbs, good soil, and patience. His famous drifts of naturalised crocus, left to colonise the meadow grass and multiply freely, remain one of the finest arguments for getting your bulbs in the ground and letting nature do the rest.
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Bedding
Cosmos are the easiest cut flowers you can grow. Plant our hardened-off plugs after the last frost, give them sun and poor soil — seriously, don't feed them — and they'll flower from July until October. Pinch out the tips early for bushy plants covered in blooms, then cut for the vase as often as you like. The more you pick, the more they flower. This guide covers planting, pinching, deadheading, container growing, and a month-by-month calendar to keep you on track all season.
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Bedding
Sweet peas thrive in pots if you get the basics right. This guide covers everything specific to container growing — pot size and depth, the ideal compost mix, how often to water (more than you'd think), when to feed, and why picking regularly is the secret to flowers all summer long.
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Bedding
Sweet peas (Lathyrus odoratus) are hardy annual climbers in the legume family, reaching 1.5–2m on simple supports and flowering from June until…
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Garden Plants
How to Plant Clematis in Open Ground Clematis will grow well practically anywhere if you give them five things: soil preparation, correct…
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