The 5 plants gardeners simply can't live without
With spring on the horizon and many of us looking forward to spending more time outdoors, Britain's gardeners have shared the five plants they simply can’t live without – and the results might surprise you.
The survey, carried out by members of the The Hardy Plant Society, highlighted the plants they love to grow, and even though almost 120 plants featured in the list, there were five standout winners.
Desert Island Plants: the top 5 plants gardeners cannot live without
Hardy geraniums
Roses
Salvias
Hellebores
Snowdrops
Topping the list is hardy geraniums. Although they might not be the first plant that springs to mind when you think of the most beloved, they are a hugely popular hardy perennial for a reason. Tough, adaptable, and easy to grow, hardy geraniums come in a range of beautiful colours, making them a great choice for a colourful garden display.
Steve Bustin, chair of The Hardy Plant Society, was 'a little surprised' that hardy geraniums emerged as the clear winner, as they are not 'the showiest plants' in a garden. 'Gardeners aren’t always looking for the brightest, most exciting or newest variety but in fact value plants that are great doers, providing a long season of interest, great colour and many years of well-behaved growth and pleasure,' he says.
Looking for a specific cultivar of hardy geranium to try in your own garden? Among those who recommended the eye-catching plant, the most popular choices were geranium 'Rozanne' and geranium phaeum 'Wendy's Blush', with their near-white flowers and purple veins.
A long-time garden favourite and ultimate classic, roses taking second place is probably a bit less surprising. One rose variety in particular continues to be recommended: Rosa x odorata 'Mutabilis', a repeat-flowering shrub rose with near-thornless stems. Flowering from early summer to autumn and starting off as yellow before ageing to pink and eventually crimson, it will add fabulous colour to your borders.
Salvias (including the popular S. 'Amistad' and S. nemorosa ‘Caradonna'), hellebores, and their winter-flowering partner, snowdrops, round out the top five.
As for the plants that gardeners wouldn't recommend, three in particular stood out: while echinacea and meconopsis were seen as some of the most problematic plants to keep alive, salvias also appeared on the list, making it both a favourite and a nemesis. 'This may be because a lot of salvias (including the popular 'Amistad') are only borderline hardy (many should be considered tender) and many don't like the excessively wet conditions a lot of British gardeners have faced recently,' explains Steve.
Follow House Beautiful on TikTok and Instagram.
You Might Also Like
