The garden centre - part 4: pot toppers

The Garden Centre - Pot-toppers

As you tour Burford Garden Company, Arthur shows you his favourite pot-toppers that elevate any bulb lasagne.

Pansies

In a sheltered spot, pansies will flower throughout the winter. When spring hits, they will flower underneath the tulips. The pansies give a show of foliage in the wintertime.

Arthur plans to take them home and combine them with his other pot toppers, things that he's grown from seed. Pansies are large flowers and very low, so they're very helpful in making the pot seem full. It will be really helpful in making the pots.

Wallflowers

With pot gardening, you can't plant wallflowers bareroot. Our only option is to get them as plugs and grow them ourselves. When you buy plants like wallflowers at the garden centre, they are often a mix and not a specific shade. Arthur rarely knows what mix of colours to expect; it could even result in a colour clash.

Fennel

Fennel is one of Arthur's favourite foliages for winter in particular. Bronze Fennel sends up a feathery fluff. In the sheltered microclimate of a balcony, it will give a bit of presence on top of the bulbs in the winter. When the tulips are in flower, they'll grow with the tulips.