Plants For Spring Colour

Welcome Spring with Open Arms

Spring is on her way…at least she is here in the UK.

I want to talk about some staple plants for spring colour, perennial plants and shrubs that will soon start to give glorious colour, fragrance and joy to your spring garden and with love and a little attention will continue to do so year-on-year. We’ll also look at some ideas for container planting Ideas for Spring Containers that will give an instant burst of freshness to patios, yards, and window boxes. So let’s talk about some of the best plants for spring colour.

When you see any plants here that you like, click on the links or images to find out how to buy.

At this time of year many of the online garden and plants stores have sales on so it’s a great time to find some blooming good bargains.

What Can You Grow For Spring?

Which trees, and shrubs give pleasure by flowering early in the spring time?

Two of my all time favourites are Magnolia and Camellia, there are 100,s of varieties to choose from. They both offer colour, texture, scent and interest. Whether you have a large or small outdoor space or even just containers there is a variety which is suitable.

Magnolia Stellata or Star Magnolia is a small tree, or it can be grown as a shrub. It comes into bud in February before the leaves and will be in full bloom through March to April, the large white showy flowers are delicate and star shaped. They grow to about 2.5m to 3m high and 2.5m to 3m width. I have one in my garden under planted with spring daffodil, crocus, snowdrops; it looks spectacular. Hardy to -20 degrees but flower buds may get frost damage.

Stellata…truly a star,

Here for a visit, doesn’t stay long,

Like a brief, beautiful love affair

Then she’s gone…

Other varieties can grow much larger and have star shaped or tulip shaped flowers in a range of white, pink, purple and yellow. Their flowering season ranges from early spring to summer, they are mainly deciduous but there are some evergreen varieties such as Grandiflora.

Camellias are also coming into flower now, they are perfect plants for spring colour, their pink rose like blooms provide a welcome splash of colour from pale, almost white pinks to deep rose/salmon pinks and lemony yellow. These are acid loving plants so they need to have ericaceous soil. They can be grown in containers provided they have the correct compost and plenty of drainage.

They are woodland plants so find them a shady spot in your garden and whenever possible use rain water for watering. They will be perfectly happy with these conditions. Hardy to -20 degrees but flower buds may get frost damage.

Syringa/Lilac trees offer the most delicious fragrance for your spring garden. Beautiful trees or shrubs and dwarf varieties are available that are happy in containers with white, lilac or deep purple flowers, the bees and pollinators love them! Planted in a sunny spot with good drainage they will flower their heart out. They flower on old wood so keep pruning to a minimum immediately after flowering is finished. Any dead or diseased wood needs to be pruned out to keep your shrub healthy. Hardy to -15 degrees.

Dicentra or Bleeding heart is a deciduous perennial with a shrub forming habit, it dies back each year, its delicate feathery foliage is just starting to appear now. Pretty heart shaped pink or white flowers are borne along gracefully arching stems.

There are so many plants to choose from to give spring colour and interest to your garden

Perennial Plants and Bulbs

Spring time is of course the time for perennials and bulbs,Perennial Plants. First Year Flowering nothing heralds spring quite like a swathe of golden daffodils, tete a tete, crocus, snowdrops, hyacinth, tulips; the list goes on. These are bulbs that show up every year and make perfect displays for borders or containers. Easy to grow they delight the senses, I await them with eager anticipation. They are some of the most rewarding spring flowers.Gardening for Well-being, Why Gardening is Good for your Health.

I have spoken of Iris and Hellebore in previous posts… Plants for Winter Colour and

Summer Flowering bulbs...  I can’t stress enough how essential these are for me and my garden, Hellebore are quite delightful and have been in flower from the end of January and will continue through spring.

Iris is one of the most elegant bulbs and comes in such a wide variety of colour combinations there is something for every garden style and scheme.

Perennial plants such as Bergenia, Pulmonaria, Aubretia, Alpines, Pansies, Primroses and Viola are all starting to put on their spring time show and again there are varieties to suit all tastes, Bergenia have lovely clusters of pink flowers that peek out from large oval green, variegated, red, burgundy leaves. I cut some of the leaves away so that I can see the flowers better. Pulmonaria is a marvelous ground cover plant with dainty, pink, lilac, blue or white flowers.

Many Ground Cover Plants are perfect for providing a wealth of spring colour, spreading carpets of foliage and pretty blooms. Check out my article of 20 best flowering ground cover plants for inspiration.

A Wide Choice Of Plants

The list is endless! Such a wide choice of plants, shrubs, trees and bulbs. I can only mention but a few but I hope there is something here to inspire you to plant something for spring that will continue to give you pleasure for many years.Hardy Evergreen Flowering Shrubs

If I have inspired you to grow some spring colour in your gardens and you found this article useful and interesting please share with friends and family.

Any thoughts, views or questions can be added in the comments box below, I always reply as soon as possible.

Happy Gardening

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