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Annuals for wildlife

One of the best things about having a garden packed with annual flowers is that it's also full of wildlife. Annuals attract wildlife like butterflies, bees and other pollinating insects like hoverflies. All these insects adore open annual flowers! But birds too will visit your garden to enjoy the big, generous seedheads.

HOW TO ATTRACT BEES AND BUTTERFLIES

Do you want to sow annuals in order to fill your garden with wildlife? That is a great initiative, since insects like bees and butterflies are having a hard time surviving. The amount of butterflies is dropping rapidly and bees are on the verge of going extinct. By turning your garden into a wildlife paradise, you can help these small animals to find a place to live. What flowers do you need?

  • Marigolds: these cheesy orange flowers are adored by butterflies, because of their bright colours;
  • Phacelia tanacetifolia: these fuzzy smoke-blue flowers are considered irresistible by bees, since they produce lots of nectar;
  • Cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus): these long-blooming, sturdy plants are a valuable source of nectar and pollen. Choose the native blue types and they will be smothered by bees before you know it;
  • Honesty (Lunaria annua): these bright pink or white flowers are rich in nectar and are therefore adored by butterflies;
  • Stocks (Matthiola): the scented white flowers of these plants attract early butterflies. They bloom from late spring onwards;
  • Forget-me-not (Myosotis): these late-spring bloomers have brightly coloured petals and nectar that is easy to access, which makes these flowers very attractive for bees.

GET BIRDS TO YOUR GARDEN WITH THESE ANNUALS

Birds, too, are a great addition to any garden. When you sow sunflowers, you are guaranteed to find some lovely birds swaying through your garden. That is because bluetits love old sunflower heads. The love-in-a-mists provide valuable food for birds as well. Their architectural seedheads are filled with delicacies that bluetits and great tits love. Last but not least, teasels attract birds of the most beautiful kind. These plants flower in their second year and are therefore biennial. Goldfinches adore spiky teasel heads.

CREATE THE BEST ENVIRONMENT FOR WILDLIFE WITH ANNUALS

Bring your garden to life by planting annuals that birds, bees and butterflies love. Are you not sure what annual plants fit inside of your garden? Visit our garden centre and ask our staff for advice and information about our annuals. We would love to help you make your garden wildlife-proof! Contact us or visit us in Poynings, Sussex.  

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