These are the easygoing, unfussy flowers that grow happily with very little intervention. They germinate well, cope with uneven weather and keep blooming without constant deadheading or fuss. Ideal for beginners, busy gardeners or anyone who wants reliable colour without overthinking it.

Alyssum

Technically a perennial, Alyssum is treated as a hardy annual smothered in tiny blooms, much loved by insects. It is capable of surviving light frosts than could kill more tender plants. With its beautiful clusters of rounded fragrant flowers it has 4 small petals, and are very effective when lots are planted together.

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Ammi

Reminiscent of Cow Parsley which softens the verges of country lanes, Ammi is a tall annual that produces a froth of delicate white blooms that bring a simple, elegant feel to summer borders. Commonly known as Bishops Weed, its graceful stems rise above ferny foliage, lending themselves nicely to summer bouquets.

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Calendula

Easy-to-grow hardy annuals flower from summer through to early autumn, making them a great choice for summer borders and containers. The flowers are good for cutting, have edible petals and are also used by herbalists to make skincare products. Plants often self-seed from year to year. Calendulas are unfussy plants that do well in most ordinary garden soil, including poor, dry soil. They flower best in full sun, but also tolerate light shade.

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Cornflower

Cornflower is an easily grown hardy annual wildflower that is quick to grow and blooms in summer, bearing masses of pretty, ruffled flowers on slender wiry stems. While not native to the UK, it was introduced from the Mediterranean thousands of years ago and is considered 'naturalised'. The original species is beloved for its deep blue blooms, but there's now a wide choice of varieties in shades of blue, pink, maroon, and white. 

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Cosmos

Cosmos will put on a continuous display throughout the summer months and well into autumn, standing on tall, slender stems which sway in the breeze creating that gorgeous soft and floaty effect. Perfect for a sunny spot in any mixed planting scheme, not only will they look great in the garden and be beneficial to pollinators, but they make lovely cut flowers too. Despite their delicate looks, these plants are pretty tough and will stay standing in rain or a drought.

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Forget Me Not

The perfect partner for spring bulbs, Myosotis, commonly know as Forget Me Not produces frothy sprays of sky blue flowers from mid-spring to early summer. Stunning when planted en masse, Forget Me Not creates a carpet of colour in beds, borders and containers and is so easy to grow. A simple yet effective bed filler. 

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Larkspur

A stunning cottage garden plant, adding height and colour to border displays. Larkspur flowers work well with roses, peonies and other tall growing flowers such as lupins and verbascums. Larkspur flowers are usually blue but they also come in mauve, pink, white and even red. They can be single or double, depending on the variety. Single-flowered varieties are loved by bees.

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Nasturtium

TheNasturtiumis a cheerful and easy-to-grow flower! Their bold blooms and edible leaves, flowers, and seedpods make them an especially fun flower for kids to plant and a favorite companion plant in the garden. Nasturtium is a good companion plant for: bean, broccoli, cabbage, cucumber, kale, melon, pumpkin, and radish. They are also a favorite of pollinators like bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, and their pretty fragrance makes them a good choice for cut-flower gardens, too.

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Nigella

Nigella, also known as Love-in-a-mist, is a wonderful cottage garden plant and a great filler. The airy foliage makes a nice complement to broader leaved plants. Nigella is a short-lived plant and probably won't make it through an entire growing season. For continuous blooms throughout the summer, make succession sowings every three weeks. Once your plants have begun to scatter seeds on their own, you won't need to continue sowing.

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Orlaya

Orlaya makes an easy to grow, quick border filler. It gives lovely fern-like foliage and clusters of pure white flowers, similar to lace-cap hydrangeas, with its flowers composed of small inner florets framed by large outer ones, forming a pretty pattern which is reminiscent of lace-cap hydrangeas. Planted en masse, the luminous white petals have a shimmering effect, creating a soft haze which melds plant masses together, immediately capturing that romantic cottage garden vibe. Long straight stems and soft ferny foliage add to its appeal.

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Poppy

Poppy is the common name for plants in the Papaveraceae family. Within this group there are annuals, perennials and biennials. They include oriental poppies, peony-types, opium poppies, field poppies, Calfornia poppies, Icelandic Poppies, Welsh poppies and Himalayan poppies. Their summer flowers may be fleeting but whatever variety you choose they make a wonderful addition to the garden.

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Scabious

Scabious, also known as pincushion flowers, are easy-to-grow. They are button-like in shape and have petals that flutter in the breeze. Under ideal growing conditions, blooms can last from spring to the first frost, although they might slow down in the high heat of summer. Equally useful as a cut fresh flower or seed head, Ping Pong (our favourite variety) gives several handfuls of stems from a single plant alone.

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Sweet Pea

Grow beautiful and flouncy Sweet Peas from seed each year for their fragrance and for cutting, climbing them over obelisks or twiggy supports in borders or in a cutting garden. Pretty, pea-like flowers come in shades of white, pink, coral, red, violet and blue, some combining two colours. Pastel shades are especially popular and petal edges may be wavy or outlined with a contrasting colour. Sweet peas are easy to grow in any fertile soil that drains easily, in full sun. 

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