Bedding plants are to gardens what fast fashion is to wardrobes. They provide colour and instant gratification, and are inexpensive and much-admired, but will ultimately be discarded when the season comes to an end.
That being said, bedding plants ensure that you don’t need green fingers to give your garden or terrace a colourful horticultural makeover. With the cooler months around the corner, all you need is some potting compost and a few trays of bedding plants – and possibly a few pots – to transform any balcony, terrace or urban garden in the space of a single afternoon. You’ll be introducing instant foliage and flowers that will last for months.
Generally speaking, most bedding plants are annuals – plants that will complete their life cycle from germination through to death inside a year, leaving just the seeds to continue into the next season. Although there are also perennial bedding plants, which will continue year after year from the same root (although the top of the plant might die), as well as biennials, the UAE climate generally pushes all bedding plants into the annual category, regardless of how they might grow in other locations. This means they will be around for a single growing season and then be disposed of.
The progress of seasons in the UAE can often be marked by the changing face of roadside municipal planting schemes, as every few months bedding plants are dug up in favour of the next species that will have its moment in the sun. They can serve a similar purpose in your own garden.
Most bedding plants can be grown from seed and nurtured on a windowsill until they are ready to be planted out. At this time of year, they can also be planted directly into the ground. If it is instant impact you are after, a few trays of bedding plants from the garden centre or market are an inexpensive purchase and will continue to give pleasure until the summer comes knocking again around April or May.
I meet Rajiv Kumar, a supervisor at Dubai Garden Centre, to find out about the company’s top-performing and bestselling bedding plants, species that even the least experienced of gardeners should feel comfortable cultivating, as their skills won’t be stretched much beyond a little watering and the occasional feed.
“In different countries, some of these plants might continue to grow into the following year, but the summer in the UAE generally prevents this. However, these plants are tolerant of the winter sun here and require it to produce their flowers,” Kumar says.
“Caring for the plants is simple – water every other day or every day, depending on the weather. You are aiming to keep the soil moist rather than wet. Then feed once or twice a month according to the type of fertiliser you use.”
To keep your bedding plants blooming, Kumar recommends feeding them with potassium, at the ratio of one scoop to a litre of water, using it about twice a month. For organically inclined growers, he suggests using Sustane, which comes in granules that you scatter on the surface of the soil and water on a monthly basis. The best thing about an organic fertiliser is that it can never burn your plants, while overfeeding with chemical fertilisers might do that. If your bedding plants are grown anywhere near fruits, vegetables or herbs that you will be eating, then Kumar always recommends choosing organic products to avoid potential contamination.
Finally, buy bags of potting soil with your plants, and if you are adding a handful of sand to your potting soil to give it a little more substance, ensure that you have sweet sand rather than something salty, or your plants won’t thank you for your efforts. A large bag costs Dh10.
Here’s a rundown of the most popular bedding plants out there:
Petunias are the garden centre’s bestsellers, and are beloved by urban gardeners and landscape architects alike. The petunia comes in a range of colours, from bold shades through to whites and delicate lilacs, and is ideal for drift planting (all one colour blocked together), or for introducing pops of colour and variety by mixing up the group. “It grows to 20 centimetres by 20cm, you can play with the colours and it will look beautiful. They will last for the season, from October until the summer starts, and are very easy to take care of. Just water them regularly and fertilise occasionally,” advises Kumar.
Geraniums are next on the list in terms of popularity, and Dubai Garden Centre sells them by the bucket load, particularly in pink, white and red. These plants grow to about 14cm and need to be watered daily. Again, they work well in pots, and also when placed directly in beds. They like most types of soil, but won’t tolerate soggy ground.
Coleus, or painted nettle, is another big seller, and these plants have striking variegated leaves of deep pink, cream, yellow and green, as well as white flowering stems. “They work especially well when planted five or six together in a pot, and produce a bushy effect,” Kumar says.
Impatiens, also known as Busy Lizzy, have flowers similar to Vinca. They will do well in the winter sun, providing cheery colour throughout the season, and can be planted in pots, hanging baskets and borders.
Marigolds are always popular, with striking orange and yellow flowers. Dubai Garden Centre stocks the African and French varieties. They have the added benefit that they repel pests and protect plants and vegetables around them.
Celosia has red, white and mixed-colour blooms. The plants work equally well in both pots and borders, and individually or in groups. The plant’s generic name comes from the Greek word “to burn”, as the flowers are flame-like when in bloom.
Zinnia produces numerous, large, multicoloured flowers and is a relative of the sunflower despite its relatively diminutive size, which reaches a mere 70cm. The flowers should draw butterflies and other useful pollinators to the garden.
Lobelia, which is lightly scented, is available in a variety of hues, but it is the strong cornflower blue shade that is the most striking. The delicate flowers work in a variety of planting scenarios, but do have particular value when interspersed in pots or hanging baskets, growing to about 20cm in height.
Calendula, or pot marigold, is a relative of the daisy family, with yellow and deep orange varieties. Its Latin name means “little calendar” or “little clock”, and its petals have additional value in that they are edible and can be added to salads.
Gazania, a native of South Africa, is a plant that produces striking vibrant and stripy flowers, and provides good drought-tolerant ground cover.
Gerbera, another plant of the daisy family, produces single-flowered stems in a wide variety of colours. When cut, they are also a popular choice for flower displays, and rank at No 5 worldwide for this purpose, being surpassed only by roses, carnations, chrysanthemums and tulips. They also attract bees and butterflies.
Alyssum is a native of the Mediterranean region, with colours ranging from pink to pale lilac and yellow, although its most popular variety is probably the white, or snowcarpet. This versatile plant produces bunches of intense, sweet-smelling, small flowers, growing to a height of between 5cm and 30cm, with a spread of 20cm to 30cm, and gives good coverage for both borders, containers and rockeries.
For further information on current plant stocks at Dubai Garden Centre go to www.dubaigardencentre.ae. Alternatively, bedding plants can now be found at Warsan near Dragon Mart, Ace Hardware, the Flower Market near the Iranian Hospital in Dubai, as well as various other plant markets and some supermarkets, including Carrefour.
weekend@thenational.ae
