Plant once, enjoy year after year
Dreaming of a garden that keeps coming back on its own? From pretty poppies to sea holly, many of these clever self-seeding flowers do the hard work for you — just plant them once and enjoy beautiful blooms year after year without much extra work.
While wide varieties need to be divided or propagated, these plants cleverly disperse their seeds naturally, meaning you'll get extra flowers for free. Seeds fall on the surrounding soil and regrow, or are blown elsewhere by the wind. Some gardeners are even lucky enough to find flowers growing that they never even planted.
'There are a lot of varieties of plants that will seed again and again, but some stand out for how easily they grow year after year,' says gardening expert Jack Stooks, who is currently working with Savoo. 'These are my absolute favourites.'
Take a look at the top ones to plant now:
'Poppies do fantastically well when they self-seed,' says Jack. 'They're a good option if you want something that will come back and return each year. They also add a splash of colour to a garden.'
Sun-loving poppies thrive in well-drained soil and will bring you an abundance of colour through regular deadheading.
Nasturtiums are prolific self-seeders that return every year thanks to their large seeds that drop in late summer, sprouting the following spring.
Jack says: 'What's good about them is that you can use the flowers in summer salads, and the small leaves are slightly peppery and edible too.'
If you're after an architectural plant that will fill your garden with interest, sea holly is the flower for you (they're often seen at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show). Perfect for borders, grow them in full sun, ideally where the soil stays relatively dry in winter.
'Sea holly (eryngium) is another that does really well - varieties like "Miss Willmott’s Ghost" are known for spreading easily and adding something a bit different,' says Jack.
With striking fleshy leaves and purple bell-like flowers, Cerinthe major is one of the best annual foliage plants that can cleverly self-seed.
'Cerinthe major is a really nice option, especially in areas where you have gravel. They tend to grow quite well in those conditions and will often self-seed into the gravel quite naturally, which works really well and adds to their appeal,' says Jack.
'Origanum is also a really good plant for self-seeding,' says Jack. 'It thrives in dry conditions and can even grow in tougher spots like driveways or cracks in paving. It will come back every year - you just cut it down, and it will sprout again.'
Plus, Jack also recommends Lady's mantle in those planting conditions.
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