Five spring perennials for March
The arrival of spring sees masses of beautiful flowers, including many species and cultivars of primula and hellebore.
Many flowers will be taking advantage of the increased sunlight available to them, before the leaves of deciduous trees and shrubs open to create a shady canopy. You can also create your own stunning combinations of spring flowering perennials by planting them in pots and containers.
Discover five beautiful spring flowering perennials for March colour and cut flowers, below.
Pulmonaria (lungwort)
Pulmonarias, or lungworts, are brilliant plants to have in the garden. There are plenty of different varieties to choose from, including 'Red Freckles', 'Ocupol' or simply the species lungwort Pulmonaria rubra. All are easy to grow, have pretty flowers and are a magnet for bees.
Watch Monty Don demonstrates how to divide lungwort, in this Gardeners' World clip:
Pulsatilla (pasque flower)
Pulsatilla, also known as pasque flowers, form colonies with silky, silvery foliage and purple, star-shaped flowers appearing from March to May. Once flowering has finished, leave the seedheads on to encourage the plants to self-seed and form new colonies.
Native primroses
Local to the UK, our native primroses, Primula vulgaris, are reliable plants that will take the worst weather thrown at them with gusto. A cool, shady spot is ideal. Here, you can leave them to naturalise and form clumps with fragrant, pale lemon yellow flowers.
Bergenia
Bergenias are tough, evergreen perennials. They'll happily tolerate a wide range of growing conditions, making them ideal ground cover plants. There are a number of new and attractive cultivars available, including the hairy-leaved Bergenia ciliata 'Wilton' and the icy pink flowered 'Silberlicht'.
Hellebores
Hellebores are perfect additions to woodland-style planting schemes – they look wonderful planted beneath trees where they combine well with other spring flowering plants like primulas and grape hyacinth. You can even use them to create a bee-friendly spring container display.
