I'm sure many of you were tempted back in the spring to purchase and plant a few of the bedding Primulas with their stunning range of flower colours in bright and rich deep shades, surrounded by fresh or dark green foliage. They will have flowered for weeks, providing a most welcome and cheerful sight.
It's likely by now that the displays of blooms will be over, or certainly fading, and the temptation is to discard them along with other spring bedding plants, such as wallflowers and forget-me-nots. However, my advice would be to think again, as these little gems are perennial and this is an ideal time to propagate them by division, increasing your stock of Primulas for another superb show next spring.
It really is very easy. First, water your plants well, prior to lifting them. In fact, try if possible to water them the night before. I would also suggest that if there is some flower colour left, label them to enable you to select the correct shades of blooms for following bedding schemes.
These clump-forming plants are readily removed using a garden fork and, once lifted, shake off the excess soil. At this stage you can, if you wish, wash the crowns with water to clearly see where your bedding Primulas can be divided. Using both hands split up the clumps, which should easily tease apart. Just make sure that with each division there are plenty of roots and several strong shoots. At this stage, these divisions can be planted back into the ground. But, if you prefer, you can take this process a stage further. All you need is a sharp knife - use this to select individual rosettes, taking care as you cut them that some roots are attached. The number of plants obtained by these methods will obviously vary depending upon the original size of the clump.
Whether you opt for the small divisions or individual rosettes I would recommend before planting you trim the roots by half to promote a new healthy root system. Cut off any old flowering spikes and also reduce the foliage by half. This topping of the foliage will help to reduce excess water loss through the leaves, which in turn aids the plant's chances of survival.
When it comes to replanting, the ideal spot is a shaded nursery bed, where they can be planted in lines and easily looked after. Make sure the soil has plenty of organic matter and thoroughly mix some bone meal into it. Water them well in and keep watering during the summer months, especially during dry spells, until you know the plants have established a substantial root system.
Here they can stay until the autumn, when they should be ready to transplant for yet another spring display, with perhaps a few left for some friends and neighbours.
However, at the moment it is the summer bedding displays that are important. Over the next couple of weeks we finally hope there is little risk of frost and take the plunge of planting a whole range of half hardy or tender plants.
Whether you have nurtured your own plants from seed, grown them on from plugs or decided to buy in mature pot bedding, some words of warning: do make sure they have been properly hardened-off to withstand the rigours of our outside climate. Have the ground well prepared before any planting takes place. With very light sandy or heavy clay soils, think about incorporating some form of humus, such as garden compost or leaf mould to either help retain the moisture or improve the drainage of the respective soil type. Top dress your soil with a general purpose fertiliser, one to two ozs per square yard is generally sufficient and then lightly fork or rake this in.
Then comes the best part, the actual planting. I always think it is a good idea if the plants are in individual pots to lay them out first. This gives you a chance to experiment with your design and at the same time makes sure you have enough plants.
With mass bedding schemes try to stagger your planting to help avoid the straight line effect and don't space them too far apart. The aim is to create a carpet of colour with complete ground cover and no sign of the soil below; after all, you don't want to encourage the growth of unnecessary weeds.
Do remember to check on the seed packet or plant label how tall your bedding plants will eventually grow and use the more compact ones for the front of the border. A carefully planned, tiered bedding scheme can look most impressive. You can also add extra interest and height by planting the occasional pot plant.
Standard Fuchsias are a favourite, blooming right through the summer. Argyranthemum frutescens with its lovely blue green foliage and white daisy flowers with bright yellow centres can also be grown in standard form. Or how about a spiky architectural foliage plant such as many of the attractive varieties of Cordylines.
Planting such schemes can be great fun, whether you prefer to be more traditional or slightly more adventurous, and, once complete, with careful watering for at least the first few weeks your creations will give you months of pleasure.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article