With the sun starting to shine across the UK, now is the ideal time to get your garden ready for summer.
Flowers can brighten up any part of your outdoor space, but it is important to know which ones will have the greatest impact.
Head gardener at Swinton Estate Dame Susan Cunliffe-Lister spoke exclusively to GB News about what flowers people should pick to add colour to their gardens.
Susan said: "I highly recommend osteospermums called Lady Leitrim for any garden. I first planted these 20 years ago and they flower every spring to October."
One of the flowers the gardener advised was primroses
GETTY
The plant is very easy for gardeners to manage, as they can "simply plant them, leave them and do nothing else".
The gardener advised: "Find a hot, dry spot beside a wall, and she will grow. Not only are they pretty, but they attract all sorts of beneficial insects. I think they are my favourite plant."
For newbie gardeners, "easy-to-grow" plants like primroses are a "brilliant and rewarding" choice.
Susan explained: "Primroses attract pollinators and are an attractive early-season bloom. The perfect choice [for a garden]."
Other good options for new gardeners are perennial bulbs such as snowdrops and daffodils, which will "come up every year".
The expert said: "Snowdrops and daffodils require minimal maintenance, and they will pop up reliably with a beautiful burst of colour. It's a good, worthwhile reward after all the hard work in your garden."
Flowers can only succeed if planted in the right environment, so ensure your garden is weed-free and has soil with a "good level of moisture".
Susan recommended: "A really good thing to do right now is to apply mulch to your garden soil. This will feed the beds in your garden and help your plants grow better by controlling weeds and retaining water in the soil.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Perennial bulbs like snowdrops are a good option for newbie gardeners
PA"You don't want weeds competing with all your nice, new plants you want to grow in your garden, so newbies need to really work to keep the weeds down.
"That way, your plants will get all the water, nutrients and sunlight the way they want and need."
A lawn expert shared three "effective" ways to remove weeds and create space for plants to thrive.
He suggested hoeing is an excellent technique for tackling weak lawn weeds in the springtime.
