Beds & Borders

The corn chamomiles are lovely plants for a sunny well-drained border, covered with bright, single daisy-like flowers and attractive ferny grey-green foliage throughout the main summer season. An ideal plant for naturalised plantings, wild flower meadows or just a wild part of your garden.

In addition to having one of the most unusual names, Antirrhinum braun-blanquetii, is also one of the few hardy perennial species of snapdragon. Named for Josias Braun-Blanquet an influential 20th century Swiss botanist it bloom the first year from seed producing numerous spikes from which delicate yellow, large snapdragon blooms appear.

Antirrhinum majus ‘Appleblossom’ offers soft, pastel-toned blooms in peach, apricot and soft pink that are beautifully blended so that each ruffled flower looks as though it has been delicately hand painted. The densely packed spikes bloom in succession from early summer right through to mid-autumn.

Antirrhinum majus ‘Brighton Rock’ is of a type that has been in cultivation since the 19th Century. Updated and revamped, it can now be found marketed as ‘Bizarre Hybrids’. Some blooms are delicately marbled, others are speckled and striped. The brighter, contrasting colours are accentuated with the most beautiful, subtle coloured blooms.

Antirrhinum majus are one of the most reliable flowers for the garden. Superb for contrast and for giving height to the border, 'Canary Bird' has excellent vigour, the densely packed spikes bloom in succession, providing months of deep yellow flowers on strong stems that are great for cutting.

Antirrhinum 'Dark Leaved Mix' blooms with a vibrant mix of colours, each with dark purplish bronze foliage. The robust plants grow to around 60 to 70cm (20 to 24in) tall. The densely packed spikes bloom in succession from early summer right through to mid-autumn.

Antirrhinum majus are one of the most reliable flowers for the garden, grow them in full sun, and after they are done blooming trim the plants back and they will quickly be blooming again. 'Defiance' sport clusters of uniquely shaped red blooms, a traditional warm orange-red, rather than hot crimson-red, they are very easy to combine with other colours in the garden.

Antirrhinum majus 'Kimosy' is a lovely dwarf variety of Snapdragon with a tidy, compact habit. An all-around excellent garden performer, the plants perform well in containers, in beds or in borders. In a wide range of colours they flower from early summer right through to mid-autumn.

Antirrhinum majus 'Lucky Lips' has been awarded the Fleuroselect Award. The judges were impressed by its height and compact plant habit. Blooming with distinctive contrasting bicolour purple-red and white flowers, a colour way that is often referred to as a 'silver bi-colour', it is ideal for adding height to borders or for cutting.

Antirrhinum majus are one of the most reliable flowers for the garden and one of the most important 'summer cut-flowers' grown from seed. Although the usually bloom in boldly painted, bright primary colours, its lovely to be offered a softer option. 'Orange Wonder' has the most beautiful and delicate, orange-rose blooms.

Though technically classified as a short lived perennial, Antirrhinum majus are often cultivated as an annual, sown early in spring to flower in summer. They can also be grown as a biennial, sown in late summer to flower the following season. 'Rose' blooms with beautifully soft rose pink flowers.

Antirrhinum majus 'Ruby' produces densely packed spikes that bloom in succession with voluptuous, ruby red flowers. Superb for contrast and for giving height to the border they also make an excellent cut flower. After they are done blooming, trim the plants back, and they will quickly be blooming again.

Worldwide, Antirrhinum is one of the most important 'summer cut-flowers', grown year-round in greenhouses they are adored by florists and gardeners alike. An all-around excellent garden performer, 'Snowflake' produces densely packed spikes that bloom in succession with pure white flowers.

Antirrhinum majus ‘Tetra Mix’ produce tall, stately plants with ruffled blooms in a rich variety of colours. The robust plants grow to around 90cm tall. Superb for contrast and for giving height to the border, they are grown year-round by florists as a cut flower and are an all-around excellent garden performer.

Aquilegia alpina is a species-columbine that rivals the fanciest cultivars and has been grown in gardens for as long as the idea of gardening has existed. It is a clump-forming perennial with deep blue-green, downy foliage and vibrant violet blue nodding flowers in late spring and early summer.

Aquilegia atrata is a beautiful free flowering species that is native to the alpine meadows and forest clearings of Switzerland and Northern Europe. With many branching stems of deepest coloured, almost black flowers. This is an outstanding, highly sought species that would be a showstopper in any garden.

Native to Canada and the US in all states east of the Rockies, this superb variety is quite unlike the usual Aquilegia. Growing just twelve to eighteen inches tall, with dark-green foliage and eye-catching, scarlet and lemon-yellow flowers which hang like drifts of softly illuminated lanterns.

Aquilegia var. stellata 'Barlow Mix' is one of the really exceptional doubles forms of Aquilegia. It is the first Aquilegia series with fully double, spurless flowers. Stylish and elegant, with a graceful upright habit they grow to around 80cm tall. It produces many stems and makes an ideal cut flower.

Eye-catching, purple-black flowers with contrasting white centres appear in late spring and early summer above fern-like, mid-green leaves this variety is something special. 'William Guinness' is a superb and reliable Aquilegia variety that makes an ideal cut flower, it grows and blooms well in shady areas.

Mckana's Giant is a superior strain developed for its very large flowers with long graceful spurs. This exciting group of hybrid aquilegia in a very wide colour range, including combinations of white, pink, blue, yellow, crimson and scarlet, with crisp coloured outer petals, and cream/white coloured inner petals..