The 35p IKEA flower that blooms all summer AND survives winter – it comes in loads of bright colours & perfect for pots
SEASONAL flowers are beautiful, but perennial plants provide infinite colour and joy.
Pansies are considered a short-lived perennial, meaning they can survive for more than one growing season.
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They are super colourful, often marked in the centre and look like faces - sometimes with darker blotches or 'whiskered' or plain.
They come in an enormous range of colours and variations - from blue, mauve, pink, purple, red, yellow, and white.
What's more, they flower all year round, which is great when the rest of your garden dies back and you're desperate for colour in the winter.
Pansies start petite in size but can spread, so they make the perfect plant to add to your garden borders, pots and hanging baskets.
And IKEA is selling trays of 10 pansies for just £3.50 - that's 35p a plant!
The online product description for the pansies reads: "Let your indoor and outdoor plant pots bloom with lively pansies."
And IKEA customers were impressed with the pansies, one said: "They've provided continuous spring colour to our garden."
Another wrote: "Good value great price, lovely plants."
A third reviewed: "Good value pansies nice colours and healthy plants."
How to care for pansies
Pansies do best in full sun to partial shade.
If there has been continuous hot weather, they need to be watered regularly - and water the soil rather than the foliage as this avoids the spread of fungal diseases.
From spring to autumn, it's recommended that you feed them fortnightly with a liquid fertiliser, and remove the faded and dead flowers regularly, which encourages the plant to keep producing new blooms.
You can do this by either pinching them off with your finger and thumb, or using a pair of garden snips or secateurs to cut off the dead heads.
Other flowers that come back every year
Chrysanthemums
A hardy perennial, Chrysanthemums if planted in the right conditions will return the following year.
Campanula portenschlagiana
Nicknamed the Dalmatian bellflower, Campanula portenschlagiana is a hardy perennial, meaning it will typically return each year.
June gardening jobs
The Sun's Gardening Editor, Veronica Lorraine, has shared the tasks you should take this month.
Stake out leggy perennials
With all the dramatic weather we've been having, it's definitely time to stake out your leggy perennials (the ones that come back every year). Heavy rain and growth spurts, can make them collapse and flop.
Picking out the slugs and snails
Hopefully as we move into summer they will do less damage as the plants get bigger. The best way is still to go out at night with a head torch to find them.
Pick elderflower heads
You can use them to make your own cordial, or add to cakes, champagne or even fry them in batter.
Get on top of weeds
It's around now that weeds really ramp up in the garden, so keep on top of them with hoe-ing - or just the traditional 'on your knees with a hand fork'. Try and avoid chemicals - remember weeds are just plants in the wrong place.
Up the mowing
You'll need to mow your lawn weekly now - if you've got time, weed it beforehand as once you mow you chop off the leaves and its harder to see them.
Check on your tomatoes
Your tomato plants will need attention - water, feed and regularly and pinch out the sideshoots.
Chelsea Chop
There's still time for the Chelsea Chop - plants like Rudbeckia's, Asters, Penstemons, Sedums and other perennials can be cut back by a third to help them get a bit more bushy, and prolong the flowering period.
Sort out your tulips
If you can be bothered and have space - lift and story your tulip bulbs to ensure colour next Spring.
Deadheading your roses
Take them down to the first set of healthy leaves - which will ensure more flowers for longer.
Enjoy your space
Take some time to sit and enjoy your garden or outside space - it's great for your mental health. Even just a few minutes a day can make a big difference.
It forms a mat-like ground cover and is known for its spreading habit which is perfect for the front of garden borders or under trees and shrubs.
Kalanchoe
Also known as "widow's thrill" for its reputation for being very hardy and able to thrive in harsh conditions, including neglect and minimal watering.
As perennial succulents, kalanchoe thrives indoors and required a period of reduced light and water to simulate winter dormancy.
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