Filling gaps with bedding

Ruth sings the praises of cheap and cheerful annuals

- Ruth Hayes

THE aim of a good summer garden is to have a run of colour and interest from the end of spring to the first frosts of autumn. If that sounds like a big ask, don’t worry, as it can be achieved easily and cheaply, and a lot of the heavy lifting is done by summer bedding plants.

These are the little shouts of colour that garden centres and supermarkets stack high and sell cheap.

Lobelia, petunias, pelargoniums, snapdragons, cosmos and nicotianas come in an array of heights and shades that, with judicious care, will take over from the late-spring/early summer alliums, sweet rocket, borage and foxgloves. They will flower from now until you hoik them out to make room for their winter substitutes.