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Home Ideas and Plans Project guides & Articles

Pots of colour for the winter garden

Choose your flowers:

Sweet peas: Some flowers, such as the early-blooming sweet peas, are at their best in winter and, fortunately, sweet peas can be sown happily into pots. Choose a small-growing variety like Sweet Pea Bijou Semi Dwarf (which gets up to 60cm). Bijou will look at its best if it’s trained onto a low tripod or climbing frame.
Bulbs: Spring bulbs like jonquils are readily available in April. Crowd the bulbs together in a shallow pot, then put it somewhere in the shade. Once the shoots appear, move the pot into more sun. Don’t forget, too, that bright green bulb shoots are irresistible to snails, so protect the new growth with a sprinkling of Yates Blitzem Slug & Snail Pellets. Feed the bulbs as they grow by regularly watering with Yates Thrive Natural Fish & Seaweed+ Plant Food Concentrate. Don’t forget, too, that the energy in the crowded bulbs will probably be completely spent after flowering, so it’s best to compost them rather than expecting them to survive for another year. But if you’re really keen you can try transplanting the bulb plants carefully into a garden bed, and continue feeding them until the leaves die down completely.
Cyclamens (pictured above): For frost-free areas or protected outdoor spots, cyclamens can provide colour for months. In cold climates, enjoy cyclamens indoors in a well-lit, cool position. Keep them out of heated rooms.
Pansies (pictured below) are the perennial favourites for winter colour. It’s not surprising – they’re cold tolerant, they flower for months and they come in an amazing range of colours. Yates has two pansy varieties in its seed range: the beautiful pastel coloured Pansy Imperial Antique mix and the super-large Pansy Giant Supreme.

Caring for your potted flowers

No matter which flower you choose, use a quality potting mix such as Yates Premium Potting Mix and water well. Keep the pots in a sunny, out-of-the-way spot until they’re looking at their best and then move them into a prominent, show-off position. Once the plants reach maturity, begin feeding with Yates Thrive Fish Blood & Bone Plant Food Concentrate. You can prolong their blooming by removing the spent flowers. Use Yates Rose Gun Spray Ready to Use to control pests and diseases.