August

Helianthus annuus 'F1 Gemini Summer' is F1 hybrid tall cut flower variety with golden yellow, double flowers. This professional quality sunflower is a pollenless, uniflora type that grows 90 to 120cm tall. Cut the flowers when the petals begin to unfurl from the face.

Helianthus annuus 'Cut Flower Mixture' offers a diverse range of sunflower varieties that are suited to outdoor cut flower production. In a wide range of shapes and colours, lemon, golds and reds. The heights range from 80 to 150cm (32 to 60in). They are lovely in borders or vases.

Helianthus annuus 'Copper Queen F1' is a professional quality, pollen-free sunflower with golden yellow petals and rich dark brown disks. 150cm (5ft) tall. The golden yellow petals are ‘dusted’ with a layer of translucent cinnamon-red, giving the large flowers a rich orange appearance. Cut the flowers as soon as all the petals unfurl.

Sunflower ‘Autumn Beauty’ produces numerous long-stemmed flowers from summer to late autumn in a variety of solid and bi-colour bright warm colours - golden yellow, bronze, brown and burgundy. The long stems are excellent for cut flowers and look absolutely stunning in a vase on their own.

Geum rivale, the Water avens is a native perennial of slow-draining or wet soils. Flowering prolifically it is particularly useful in damp soils and makes a good show besides ponds. It produces both nectar and pollen and is an excellent plant for attracting pollinators and amphibians to the garden.

Many gardeners look for easy to grow, reliable perennials that provide a bright, cheerful display of colour early in the season. Geum coccineum ‘Borisii-Strain’ flowers the first year from seed producing wonderful vivid orange-red toned flowers from late spring into summer.

The beautiful, soft violet-blue flowers make the meadow crane’s bill one of our most distinctive wildflowers. Perfect for a meadow, it is often planted in gardens as it flowers for a long time, it must be one of our loveliest wild flowers and worthy of a place in any border.

What spring garden would be complete without a bed of delightful, sweet-scented Wallflowers, harbingers of warmer weather to come? “Ivory-White” is a fabulous, yet hard to find form. A compact variety with a bushy habit which is ideal as an underplanting to tulips and other spring bulbs.

Erysimum (formerly Cheiranthus) cheiri ‘Fire King' is another old and tried variety, with striking, flame-like, glowing orange-scarlet flowers. A compact variety with a bushy habit and a rich fragrance, they will supply the household with an abundance of cut flowers for many weeks.

‘Fair Lady Mixed' is a classic tried and trusted variety. Reliably hardy, this uniform mixture blooms in a wide range of colours, both pastels and bright colours and includes the more unusual dusky-pink shades. This marvellous; fragrant, floriferous flower is extremely easy to grow and very rewarding.

Wallflower ‘Cloth of Gold' is a favorite with gardeners, each plant wears a cloak of the finest gold and the large golden-yellow flowers are filled with a sweet fragrance, from mid-spring and throughout summer. They are a perfect foil for daffodils and many other spring bulbs.

This old English cottage plant is making a comeback, and no wonder. The astonishing, velvety Wallflower 'Blood Red' with deep crimson-red flowers is a favourite with gardeners. They are ideal for borders and edging, they could also be used in large containers….and of course, walls!

Siberian wallflowers are at their best in early to mid-May. With cheerful deep orange blooms, they are very easy to grow and combine well with other plants; indeed wallflowers demand companions and set the mind racing regarding potential planting combinations.

Echinacea pallida is one of the more rare members of the Echinacea family. They have much longer, ray flowers than those of the more familiar purple coneflower, the plants bloom earlier and continue to bloom sporadically through the autumn months.

Native to the central and south-eastern parts of the United States, Echinacea angustifolia is valued as a short-term stimulant to the immune system. This classic purple flower is easy to grow and continues to be a favorite in home and public gardens, a ‘tried and true’ classic sure to please any home gardener.