A Marathon of Blooms

- Niall Wimsey

Mostpeople want their gardens full of flowers and fragrances for as long as possible. Thankfully Proven Winners have made this much more straightforward by developing an assortment of plants that either bloom continuously or provide two shows of flowers in the year. These plants are easy to grow and maintain and require no special skills!

We have included our favourite plants, which will help you create a beautiful and colourful landscape with minimal fuss. All are grown by us here at the nursery so you can be rest assured we will always have a plentiful supply.

Bloomerang Lilacs

These lilacs are related to the Korean Dwarf lilacs producing smaller but still highly fragrant flowers like the traditional French lilac.

They are well suited to smaller gardens and can grow in pots; they will flower with other Lilacs in the spring and then again in August/September. These lilacs are also highly disease resistant, making a huge difference in our wet, coastal climate.

These Azaleas tick all the boxes for us and are one of the most popular plants amongst our customers; why? Being evergreen, they give structure to the garden all year long, and best of all, they flower not just in spring but also in late summer.

Available in an array of colours in single and sumptuous double blooms, they are one of the easiest plants to grow in your garden. They are happy in part shade or full sun and are easily trimmed into shape with your garden shears.

Re-blooming Hydrangeas

These hydrangeas from Proven Winners are well known for being some of the best available and they continue to improve in both flowering performance and ease of growing.

Many, including our favourites listed below, do not grow to be massive, meaning it is no longer necessary to worry if you are pruning them correctly. Simply snip off the old flower heads in spring. Our favourites include Little Lime Punch, Little Lime, Let’s Dance Arriba! & Cityline Paris.

Dianthus

Dianthus, often called Pinks or Carnations, are great perennials that continue to flower throughout early summer to late fall, especially if you trim them once they have finished their first flush of flowers.

The Fruit Punch series has an array of colourful shades with larger flowers, which are suitable for cutting for small arrangements. Paint The Town series are the daintier cousins, which are great for low spreading colour and look excellent set amongst a rock garden or bordering your taller plants.

Roses

The entire rose collection by Proven Winners provide some of the best additions of colour to your garden. We love the “At Last” rose due to its classic look, superb fragrance and pest and disease resistance. It flowers as long as the weather lets it, often right into November! Don’t forget to check out “Suñorita” and the Oso Easy Collection, which are great for mass plantings and minimal maintenance.

Salvia

Perennial Salvia are tough plants to add to your landscape. They are available in a multitude of colours but are renowned for their indigo and deep violet hues.

Vibrant flower spikes are set against gorgeous green leaves. They will re-bloom after their first flush in early summer if given a light trim.

The thick aromatic leaves make Salvia remarkably drought resistant once established and are excellent in sunny, hot spots in your garden. If you have particularly heavy or wet soil, you can add sand or grit to the planting hole to help with those drainage problems.

Flowers are highly attractive to hummingbirds, bees and other pollinators helping you create the perfect oasis for them and you. Also available in Pinks, Whites and Mauve.