Flowering Plants for Colour

If your garden reads as a wall of green with nothing to draw the eye, the fix is a deliberate colour plan rather than a random trolley of pretty flowers. This collection exists for that job: building a garden that has something in bloom, or in brilliant foliage, in every month of the year.

Professional planting schemes rely on two simple rules you can borrow. First, repeat: planting in groups of 3 to 5 of the same variety creates blocks of colour that register from a distance, where single plants disappear. Second, decide on a palette before you buy. Warm schemes of red, orange and gold feel energetic and suit full sun positions, while cool schemes of blue, purple and white make small spaces feel larger and calmer. In most Australian climates you can realistically plan for four distinct waves of colour, so map your existing garden by season and buy to fill the quietest gap first, which for many gardens is late winter.

• Spring: the easiest season, so use it for your boldest statement plantings
• Summer: choose heat proven bloomers that flower through January rather than collapsing in the first heatwave
• Autumn: lean on late flowering shrubs plus foliage that colours as temperatures drop
• Winter: this is where cool season flowering shrubs and winter blooming natives earn their keep

Colour becomes even more rewarding when it comes with perfume, and plenty of gardeners pair this range with our fragrant plants so beds appeal to the nose as well as the eye. For two reliable colour producers at opposite ends of the calendar, see our crepe myrtle care guide for months of summer bloom and our hydrangea care guide for lush shaded colour. Wherever you are in Australia, we deliver to your door, and our team can help you match varieties to your climate zone before you order.