Hardy Annuals

Cornflowers are the most splendid of annuals. Centaurea cyanus 'Classic Fantastic' blooms in a mixture of captivating blue shades, ranging from light heavenly blue to dark blue. The flowers are often in two shades of blue or have a dark center and lighter petals. They are breathtaking when they're grown in dense drifts.

A favorite annual flower and cottage garden staple, Centaurea 'Blue Boy' has piercing, bright blue flowers with ruffled petals and violet-blue centres. The blooms appear from early to late summer. These beauties grow well as border plants and are wonderful in a cutting garden.

The Boy Series, which all feature double flowered blooms on tall stems for garden or cutting, are available in many colours. These beauties grow well as border plants and are wonderful in a cutting garden. 'Black ball' flowers are a lovely rich dark-chocolate hue, almost black on cloudy days.

'Touch of Red Mix' is an exceptional, unusual and dramatic mix of colours. Containing the three colours in the 'Touch of Red' series, Buff, Orange and Yellow, each with deep bronze and red edges and backs of each petal. A very pleasing effect that will brighten up the garden or any floral arrangement.

Calendula 'Touch of Red Buff' is a very interesting and unusual colour, a very contemporary beige-pink with darker petal tips giving a beautiful antique and vintage effect. For cut flowers, harvest when blooms are partially open and clip spent flowers to achieve a longer blooming season.

'Sunset Buff' is a lovely, more subtle coloured calendula. It is the soft apricot-buff version of 'Indian Prince' with the same crimson petal backs. They grow to a height of around 60cm and a spread of 45cm, are an excellent variety for borders and make a stunning cut flower.

A delightful compact mix of single and semi-double forms, the daisy-like open petals of 'Oopsy Daisy' are bright in the centre with dark tips. Easy to grow they thrive in the cooler weather of spring and autumn. This is an excellent variety for borders and containers and will add cheer to any location.

Calendula officinalis 'Neon' is a true showstopper. The densely set, double flowers glow with deep orange petals each with bronze tips. Growing to a height of around 60 to 70cm they are the essence of early summer colour in the garden and make a stunning cut flower.

Calendula officinalis ‘Ivory Princess’ is a tall show stopper with giant buttery flowers. The petals are a mix of creamy buff-yellow with tips of the serrated, buttercream petals having the tiniest outline of brown, giving a ruffled, lacy effect which beautifully compliments the dark brown eye.

A unique new colour in Calendula, 'Double Lemon' is an award winning variety that produces large double, pale lemon blooms, each with a deep yellow heart. Compact, bushy and free flowering. the medium height plants are an excellent variety for borders and containers.

Calendula officinalis 'Cut Flower Mix’ is a specially selected mix of colours and types, each with long stems designed for cutting. They grow to a height of around 70 to 80cm, are an excellent variety for borders and make a stunning cut flower. Clip spent flowers to achieve a longer blooming season.

Calendula officinalis 'Citrus Mixed' is a highly attractive hardy annual variety producing a bright mixture of apricot, orange, lemon and cream blooms from May to September. Among the most popular of hardy annuals, they are very easy to grow, and thrive in the cooler weather of spring and autumn.

Cheerful and bright, use Calendula in beds, borders or containers. Calendula is prolific and durable, and like most hardy annuals it is easy to grow, simply sow where it is to flower. It is currently one of the top herbs used for medicinal use. Sprinkle salads and decorate cakes with the edible tangy petals.

‘Indian Prince' has unique petals quite unlike other Calendula, the dark orange rays are in layers of orange, backed with rich mahogany red petals. Easily grown, sown direct in spring or in autumn, they are perfect candidates for cutting and flower arrangements.

Calamintha nepeta is a very attractive bushy, perennial that should be in every garden. Clouds of tiny, lilac-mauve flowers appear in early summer and flower continuously from early June right through to late September. The leaves exude a lovely minty scent when crushed and the flowers are true bee pasture.

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.

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 '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 '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 'Yellow Shades' feature delicate primrose-yellow, frilled blooms on compact plants. Double snapdragon blooms are often referred to as 'butterfly' or 'Azalea' type blooms. Given sunshine and well-drained soil, they grow vigorously and flower freely.

'Twinny White' snapdragons produce large 'butterfly' or 'azalea' flowered blooms that jostle one another for space on compact plants. Given sunshine and well-drained soil, they grow vigorously and flower freely. The plants are exceptionally weather tolerant, and are excellent performers in both heat and rain.

The Antirrhinum 'F1 Twinny' series offers large 'butterfly' azalea flowered blooms that jostle one another for space on compact plants. 'Twinny Violet' blooms with the most luscious, deep violet-magenta double blooms. They grow vigorously and flower freely and are excellent performers in both heat and rain.