February Flowers- The Early Blooms

We're very quickly coming through to the end of the Winter & getting ready to jump into the Spring.
Watching the garden closely can be wonderful during this seasonal change as there are so many plants flourishing & in flower as well as many just beginning to show a little promise of what's yet to come.

I'm writing this blog using the flowers from my own garden and gardens of families & friends too, to share the beauty of the early February garden but also to inspire anyone looking for ideas to gain early flowering plants in their garden & which varieties are best to go for.

We are starting with not only one of my favourites, but a favourite of many gardeners at this time of the year.

The Hellebore

With so many varieties to choose from, you can create a Hellebore haven in your garden, in tones of pinks, creams & delicate mint greens.

Hellebores mix beautifully with early flowering bulbs such as Snowdrops, Crocus & mid spring flowering Narcissus that pop up around & in-between the pretty star-shaped elegant blooms.

Varieties in my garden:

Helleborus 'White Spotted Lady'

A striking variety with creamy-white blooms that have an intricate spotted detail in the centre of each bloom, deep pink-magenta spots in colour that contrast with the cream petals beautifully.

Helleborus 'Pink Spotted Lady'

Well without stating the obvious, this is a pale pink petaled version of the h. 'White Spotted Lady'.
Pretty tone of colour that blends beautifully together, the two shades of pink working their magic within the bloom. Both colour varieties look wonderful planted on their own or mixed together, the different shades complementing one another.

I very much like the Helleborus 'Double Ellen' varieties too! The blooms are simply stunning with their doubled up petals, wonderful colour mixes & yet the flowers still look wonderfully elegant but powerful. A garden favourite for many!


Snowdrop - Galanthus nivalis

Late Winter and well into early spring, a simple & elegant bloom that can create a mood changing impact when planted in drifts. Carpets of delicate pure white droplet blooms fill woodlands, parkland, verges & gardens creating that first little buzz of Spring, letting us all know that longer days, warmer weather & more flowers are on their way!

Did you know that there are over 70 different species & varieties of Snowdrop?
There are double types & single flowering types.

All of them are just beautiful & can be grown in many different places within your garden. Plant in containers on the patio, plant in clumps within your borders (near the front and towards the middle), create drifts in your lawn or meadow space. So many possibilities.
The best way to plant? Many say to buy Snowdrops 'in the green' which is basically buying and planting them freshly pulled from the ground with foliage & still some flower left on, ready to plant ASAP. (Always buy 'in the green' flowering bulbs from trusted sources, never pull your own up from protected woodland or natural places).

I personally just love the simple but wonderful single flowering types of Snowdrop.

Winter Jasmin- Jasminum nudiflorum

Sunshine & Spring yellow blooms cover the deep green, naked stems of this wall shrub throughout the mid Winter all the way through into early Spring.

Winter Jasmin can be trained & grown up walls, fences, buildings & trellis, providing a colourful blanket to these structures during the winter & early spring months. I would recommend planting a summer flowering Clematis alongside this variety of Jasmin so that you can create a colourful cover up your structure for most of the year!

Winter Jasmin does not tend to have a scent like the summer flowering type, however the blooms are so cheerful & bright, adding a drop of Spring yellow to your garden, what more could you want at this time of the year?

Primula vulgaris- native Primrose

Another understated yet beautiful bloomer that so many of us love to see flowering in the late winter and well into late Spring. A key sign for gardeners that the Winter season is nearly over, when these creamy-lemon yellow dainty flowers begin to burst into action.

Often found on grass verges, parkland & woodland as well as established borders that aren't disturbed very often. Clumps form beautifully over a few years, which can be split, however this can effect the flowering of the plants the following year so you do require patience for this.

Primula vulgaris has such a pretty, woody & sweet, subtle fragrance that can fill the crisp seasonal air beautifully. A perfect plant to attract any early pollinators buzzing about at this time of the year too.

Crocus

In our garden, we are lucky enough to have Crocus naturalised into the lawn, which is just fantastic as this really does add a carpet of pretty light purple to our garden when everything else looks quite dull!

Crocus are a super easy bulb to grow and are ideal for any garden of any size. Even if you have only a windowsill space to play with as your garden, you can grow Crocus in a small pot & still enjoy their early blooms in your home.

Plant them in containers with other bulbs & place around your patio, front garden or even balcony. Ideal for adding colour & Spring charm to the front of your borders too and if you want to make a larger carpet of early spring colour, why not plant in clumps and light drifts in your lawn to create a naturalised planting?

I love seeing the pretty light purple pop up in the lawn, again it's another little reminder that Spring is just around the corner. This year, ours came out in the last two weeks of January & they are still blooming now, into the first week of Feb.

You can also buy Crocus in deep purples, yellows & creams too, so you really can create a beautiful & easy early flower display with these lovely Spring bulbs.

I can see so many more little gems emerging & waking up as I write this blog, so be warned there will be many others to follow with more flowers from my garden, friends & families gardens as well as a few public gardens I'm hoping to visit in the coming weeks!

Thanks so much for reading my blog, it truly means so much to me. I love to help others feel inspired to get out into the garden & enjoy the beauty of flowers, after all, they can give so much happiness for so little in return.

Happy Gardening & Happy Winter-Spring!

Lottie x