These beautiful flowers actually belong to the buttercup family. They provide excellent mixtures of large double flowers which have a range of glorious colours such as the vibrant orange one shown. These flowers can be bought from the garden centre as plants, or alternatively grown from bulbs or tubers depending on the variety. If planting from a container don’t forget to water well and leave to drain before preparing a hole large enough to avoid damage to the roots. Put some moist compost compost and fertilizer into the planting hole. Remove the plant from its container and position it in the hole so that it’s about half an inch below the final soil level. Take care that the roots are not damaged in the process. Fill with the soil mixture from around the plant and water in well. These plants need to be watered regularly in the first year until they are well established. You can top feed with any general fertilizer to increase the number of flowers. The bowl-shaped flowers are produced on short stems. Various colours include pink shades, vibrant reds and oranges, yellows, whites and pastels. They provide a beautiful array of colour in the garden . Plants can be planted directly into the garden. They look very good in borders. They are also ideal for patio tubs and containers. These are clump forming plants and usually grow to about 8 inches high and can spread over about 12 inches. They enjoy full sun or partial shade and like moist but well-drained soil. These plants are easy to grow. There is no pruning required and they are usually pest free. More plants can be obtained by dividing mature plants in autumn. These plants usually take between 2 and 5 years to achieve full maturity. This is a plant that gives a lot of joy and colour through the year. The cut stems last well indoors. I’ve had cut flowers from these plants lasting in vases for about a fortnight.
