Mixing and matching plants

Each year I raise as many flowering plants as I can at home, to fill pots around the house. Each year we try and mix two or three different species in each pot, trying different combinations to see what works. Usually we get a few surprises: Things you expect to work well don't, whereas the ones you throw together as an afterthought sometimes work the best.

This year a particularly good combination has been Cosmos with Salpiglossis. The former I grew from seed, and the latter I got as plug plants (as a special offer from Thompson and Morgan - some of these we also gave away at the 'plant swap' in June, as I had so many). 

The photo shows the two plants growing together. The larger, flatter flowers in shades of lilac and purple are the Cosmos, whereas the multicoloured, trumpet shaped flowers are Salpiglossis. The feathery foliage of the Cosmos fills the lower part of the tub, around the bare stems of the Salpiglossis.

We also find Nemesia and Campanula worked well together, as did Osteospermum and Antirrhinum. The Antirrhimum came good late in the summer last year, when many of the other flowers had finished.

What other combinations do people find work well ? Why not take some photos over the next few weeks and tell us in the next newsletter.

Richard