Drag out summer

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The summer holidays are over and it's time to start afresh. While the garden owners have gotten their batteries recharged, the summer flowers have exhausted their strength. But there is no reason to send the containers on winter holidays for that reason. A colourful selection of late summer flowers are queuing up to replace the summer flowers when they give in.

Late summer flowers match the season. They have saturated colours, impressive shapes and exciting leaf structures. And they thrive with the unpredictable late summer weather. The lower temperatures and the higher air humidity suit them well and in fact make it much easier to care for them than the summer container plants that have to cope with sun, heat and drought.

This is also why late summer flowers look good far into autumn and many also cope with the first winter weeks. Only if the frost gets too tough most of them have to give in. Others are evergreen, tolerate the frost and are decorative throughout winter.

Late summer plants can be combined into stylish unities in large containers, or each type can be given its own container. You can then combine them to achieve the effect desired.

If you love the blue colour range, lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), butterfly lavender (Lavandula stoechas), sage (Salvia nemorosa) and, of course, asters (Aster novi-belgii) are the right choice. If you prefer red and reddish-lilac shades, celosia (Celosia argentea),  Crassula and flowering hebe are also lovely plants recommendable for late summer containers.

Foliage plants are good for structuring mixed containers and used individually, they create a pure, stylish effect. Try for instance cushion bush (Calocephalus brownii) with silvery foliage that resembles crystals when frost settles on the leaves.

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The road to success
No matter how strong the plants are, there are a few but important rules you will need to follow to succeed with your autumn and winter containers.

• Clean the containers and change the soil before planting.
• Make sure that there is a good drainage layer of, for example, broken pots or Leca nuts on the bottom of the container.
• Don't forget to water but don't overdo it.
• Place the containers in a warm, sheltered position close to the house to get maximum pleasure from them.