Plant Solutions

Season of interest: Summer

Height and spread: Variable to 30cm × 30cm (1ft × 1ft)

Companion plants: Best when backed up by the strong characterful foliage of Plectranthus or when planted with such annual grasses as Briza maxima and Lagurus ovatus.

Sanvitalia procumbens

Creeping Zinnia Tender Annual

Trailing stems with simple, deep-green leaves and a summer-long succession of abundant small daisy flowers with broad, orange or yellow sterile ray florets and deep green or dark centres. The variety ‘Irish Eyes’ is golden yellow with glowing green flower centres. ‘Orange Sprite’ is dwarfer, with bright orange semi-double flowers whose centres are dark.

Soil preference: Any fertile and free-draining

Aspect: Sun

Season of interest: Summer

Height and spread: 15cm (6in), spreading 30cm (1ft)

Companion plants: Good in a bold colour scheme with perhaps compact varieties of nasturtiums and purple-leaved basil. Excellent contrast with dark blue trailing lobelia.

Dorotheanthus bellidiformis

Livingstone Daisy Tender Annual

A South African member of the ice plant family with small, fleshy leaves, mealy in texture, and a long succession of bright, daisy-like flowers in day-glow colours. ‘Apricot Tutu’ has pinkish sunset-hued flowers, but ‘Sparkles’ has a wider range including pale cream, purplish pink and orange, many flowers being bicoloured. The flowers will only open in full, direct sunlight.

Soil preference: Free-draining, not rich

Aspect: Full sun

Season of interest: Summer

Height and spread: To 15cm × 25cm (6in × 10in)

Companion plants: Good on their own in a hot, dry container in the sun or to add colour to such succulents as echeverias, sedums or sempervivums.

Annuals good for cut flowers

Rudbeckia hirta

Half hardy perennials grown as annuals

Dwarf, intermediate and tall hybrids of this North American genus have dark stems and simple leaves, lightly covered with short hairs. The daisy flowers, with their conspicuous ray florets and dark central cones, come in warm tones from yellow through to mahogany. Good cutting varieties include the double-flowered ‘Cherokee Sunset’, spidery-bloomed ‘Chim-chimenee’, and the green and golden ‘Irish Eyes’.

Soil preference: Fertile, moisture-retentive and heavy but drained

Aspect: Sun or part shade

Season of interest: Summer, autumn

Height and spread: 15–60cm × 30cm (6in–2ft × 1ft)

Companion plants: Use these plants to extend summer displays and blend with late flowering blue and purple salvias and perennial asters. They are also bewitching with soft, flowing grasses or sedges such as bronze leaved Carex and Stipa arundinacea.

Antirrhinum majus tall varieties

Half hardy to hardy perennial, usually grown as an annual

Familiar snapdragons such as ‘Axiom Series’ which have been bred to grow as tall plants, each with a straight, single stem ending in a long spike bearing the flowers in a broad colour range, including red, pink, yellow and bicolours. Plant in a sheltered spot or raise under glass.

Soil preference: Fertile, well-drained

Aspect: Sun, often raised under glass

Season of interest: Constant, depending when planted

Height and spread: To 75cm (30in)

Companion plants: Pretty plants for a summer kitchen garden, along with such cutting flowers as marigolds, larkspurs, dahlias and Gladiolus.

Helianthus annuus

Sunflower – pollen-free varieties Hardy annual

Single or branched stems may grow from a single seed, furnished with broad, slightly hoary, simple leaves and massive flowerheads with bright yellow, orange or maroon ray florets. Selections for cutting include pollen-free ‘Bees Knees’, whose flower colours include orange, lemon yellow, rich gold and deep reddish brown and orange, as well as the powderpuff-like ‘Double Shine’.

Soil preference: Fertile, free-draining

Aspect: Sun

Season of interest: Summer

Height and spread: Variable to 2m × 30cm (6ft × 1ft)

Companion plants: Too dominant to harmonize with other annuals, but very effective when planted as short-term screens or along walls or hedges. Pollen-free varieties are NOT GOOD for wildlife.

Dianthus barbatus ‘Summer Sundae’

Annual Sweet William Hardy annual or biennial

An annual form of the familiar sweet William described here (#ulink_0eeed4f2-e69d-5674-8b6b-635c0957c6b6). Although spring-sown seed will produce flowers the same season, autumn-sown plants will grow a little larger and flower for longer. A valuable variety, though, for speedy cut flowers. The multi-headed flowers are sweetly fragrant and last well in water.

Soil preference: Any free-draining

Aspect: Sun

Season of interest: Summer