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With a little planning, the garden does not need to look bleak and empty. With a little planting, the garden can make the transition without ever looking empty or neglected.
Look for some solutions to the late spring, early summer season. Use a mix of woody vines, groundcovers and perennials to add color and interest while waiting for the summer annuals to make their show.
Now is a good time to evaluate your planting. You cannot solve the problem by waiting until next spring and try to slip plants in the ground then.
Several biennials are excellent choices. One of the showiest plants is digitalis or foxglove. Their showy white, lavender or pink spikes are covered with individual flowers. The plants are biennials so don't buy them in bloom. Buy the small rosettes and plant them this year, so they will bloom next season.
Several very strong vertical perennials also bloom during this season. The giant delphiniums, the monkshood, the larkspur and verbascum are all in bloom and add some wonderful color to the garden.
The clematis vines are blooming very well right now. In addition to the Jackmanii, look for several other cultivars.
Corydalis is another great plant that will bloom at this time. In fact, this plants blooms for most of the spring season. The most vigorous is Corydalis lutea with yellow flowers, but the plant also comes with pink, lavender and blue flowers.
The daisies and the poppies are good spring bloomers and very reliable in most conditions. Hollyhocks are old fashioned reliable performers and will also bloom well under most garden conditions. Dianthus are another great spring flower. They will grow through the summer and can be left in the ground or removed depending on the conditions. they are short-lived perennials if they are left in.
More nursuries than ever are now carrying a wide selection of perennial flowers and many more annuals than they used to. The selection now is excellent and you can add them to your garden right now. For those that have already finished their bloom season, you may want to wait until later in the season.
