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<p>Special flowers will draw the bees to your garden</p>

<p><s>Read how</s></p>

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Get bees in your garden

<p>Let the children grow up with nature</p>

<p><s>Read our tips</s></p>

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A Garden for Children to Care and Enjoy

Welcome to the Lakeside Plant and Garden Centre

Plants and garden care

Garden Features and Furniture

Green fields

Our Garden Club

Nature's Haven Easy Wildflowers are Lakeside's Best Buy this month, as May is the ideal sowing time! Each box has a mix of flower seeds and sowing granules to create an amazing wildflower garden. A 4kg box is just £19.99 with 25% more seeds. Selected to bring bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects into your garden. Planting is easy - simply shake the pack, scatter and water.

Best Buy for May

Phostrogen is a balanced all purpose plant food containing lots of nutrients to encourage bigger plants, better blooms and more vegetables in your garden! There's Nitrogen to promote healthy, green foliage. Phosphate to assist in the growth of strong, healthy roots. Potash to develop abundant flowers or fruit and help your plants become more drought and disease resistant.  Available as a liquid or granules from Lakeside. A must-have feed for every gardener!

Lakeside Recommends... Phostrogen

Spring has most certainly arrived and flowering shrubs and plants are beginning to bloom including the vibrant Rhododendron which is why it’s Lakeside’s Plant of the Month for May. Happy living in a pot or direct planted, Rhododendrons prefer acidic soil and a sheltered position. The shrub’s name is derived from the ancient Greek meaning 'rose tree'. Treat yourself to one.. or two today!

Plant of the Month for May - Rhododendrons & Azeleas

For our REGISTERED Garden Club Members the Ballygowan Love Seat and Bistro Set has £50 off throughout May. Stylishly cast from aluminium this range of garden furniture is durable, lightweight and maintenance free. A perfect addition to your outdoor area and available at Lakeside while stocks last. Love Seat £299.99 Now £249.99. Bistro Set £299.99 Now £249.99.

Garden Club Exclusive Offer - £50 off Ballygowan Furniture

Seasonal and Special Offers

<p>Find out <strong>everything about hydrangeas</strong> and start growing them yourself.</p>

<p>Did you know hydrangeas are perfect for a shady border with bold foliage and big flowerheads? If you’re looking for a plant with a significant impact, you can’t beat a hydrangea. Their rounded shape and bold foliage make an excellent backdrop for other plants, and they have their starring moment in late summer when the eye-catching flowerheads appear.&nbsp;Hydrangeas are easy to care for, and they’re perfect for lighting up a shady corner of the garden. Find out <strong>everything about hydrangeas</strong> and start growing them yourself.</p>
<h2>How to grow hydrangeas</h2>
<p>Hydrangeas do best in moist, well-drained soil in dappled shade. Macrophylla hydrangeas (mopheads and lacecaps) have a unique party trick up their sleeves – the flowers change colour depending on soil pH (acidity or alkalinity). When grown in acidic soil, their flowers turn blue, producing pink flowers in alkaline soil. White-flowered hydrangeas are the exception, as their flowers don’t change colour with soil pH.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Types of hydrangea</h2>
<p>Whatever your situation, there’s sure to be a hydrangea to suit. Here’s a quick overview of the most common hydrangea types:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><strong>Hydrangea macrophylla</strong>: this includes both mophead and lacecap hydrangeas. Mophead hydrangeas have rounded flowerheads, while lacecaps have flatter flowerheads with a centre of tiny flowers surrounded by an outer ring of open florets. The flowerheads can be red, pink, blue or white.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Hydrangea paniculata</strong>: These are generally large shrubs with conical flowerheads in late summer. In some varieties, the flowerheads gradually change colour over the season.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Hydrangea arborescens</strong>: these have huge domed flowerheads and are spectacular in full flower. Hydrangea ‘Annabelle’ is the best-known variety of this species, with enormous rounded white flowerheads.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Climbing hydrangeas</strong> (Hydrangea anomala ssp. petiolaris and Hydrangea seemannii) are excellent for a shady wall. They can take a couple of years to get going but eventually cover a large area.&nbsp;</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Landscaping ideas for hydrangeas</h2>
<p>Hydrangeas have a fabulous presence on the border, and they flower for a long time in mid and late summer. Here are a few ideas on where to place your hydrangeas for the best effect:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Hydrangeas add both texture and architectural interest to borders with their large round flowers, making a good contrast with more delicate perennials or ornamental grasses.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Mophead hydrangeas are compact enough to be grown in a large container. Place a couple in pots on a patio to brighten up a shady seating area.&nbsp;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Brightly coloured pink or blue hydrangeas make an excellent focal point in a pot on a patio. They also look good repeated through a mixed border to give a feeling of continuity to the planting.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Add white-flowered hydrangeas to a shady corner of the garden to add light and interest all through summer.&nbsp;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Hydrangeas are perfect for filling a space in a border, growing quickly into neat, rounded shrubs. The dry flowerheads last a long time and can be left on the plants over winter to add interest. They also make excellent cut flowers.&nbsp;</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Our centre has a fantastic selection of hydrangeas and other shade-loving plants. Come in and see our great range!</p>

Landscaping with hydrangeas

<p>There are many different <strong>Sunflowers</strong> varieties available in colours you might not be expecting. Find out more.</p>

<p>Knowing <strong>how to grow Sunflowers</strong> will mean you can have giant, beautiful sunflowers bringing so much joy to your garden every year. They are easy to grow and, therefore, great to grow with kids in the garden, but they are perfect for pollinators, and you can even harvest the seeds to sow the following year. Why not compete between your friends to see who can grow the tallest Sunflower or even the most unusual. There are many different varieties available in colours you might not be expecting.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Sow and care guide to growing Sunflowers&nbsp;</h2>
<p>As you would expect, Sunflowers need plenty of suns! As they grow, you will notice how they turn towards the sun absorbing the rays. You can sow seeds in modules or small pots during early spring protected from frosts or wait and plant them directly in the ground where they will grow when all frosts have passed. Keep the soil moist, and you should see good germination rates. The stems can get tall fast and start to curl or lay down if they aren’t supported, so use a small cane and gently replace it with something more sturdy as they grow taller. Some will support themselves, but in strong winds, they can fall. They are very easy to grow, keep them watered, especially in dry spells and enjoy their sunny faces.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>How to grow different varieties of Sunflowers</h2>
<p>Many varieties aren’t all yellow. The bright yellow is the most traditional, but you can also try orange, black and even pink! Some Sunflowers have been bred to grow in a pot and will only reach a couple of feet tall, whereas other giant varieties can easily reach 15ft. Some of our favourites and most popular are:</p>
<ul>
<li>Sunflower ‘Titan’</li>
<li>Sunflower ‘American Giant’</li>
<li>Sunflower ‘Little Becka’&nbsp;</li>
<li>Sunflower ‘Teddy Bear’</li>
<li>Sunflower ‘Moulin Rouge’&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<h2>Growing Sunflowers and how to use them</h2>
<p>Sunflowers are edible from roasting the entire Sunflower head with some oil drizzled over to roasting just the seeds or sprinkling them on food. Sunflower petals are lovely in salads, and the tiny shoots can be grown as microgreens to add to soups, smoothies and stews.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Encourage wildlife by growing Sunflowers</h2>
<p>The prominent seedheads are a magnet for bees. You will often find more than one bee sharing the nectar at the same time. You’ll see ladybirds and butterflies and many winter birds feasting on the seeds if you leave seedbeds on over the winter period for winter interest.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Choose your perfect Sunflowers to grow with our range of seeds in store.&nbsp;</p>

Welcome to the Lakeside Plant and Garden Centre

Plants and garden care

Garden Features and Furniture

Green fields

Our Garden Club

Seasonal and Special Offers

Plant of the Month for May - Rhododendrons & Azeleas

Garden Club Exclusive Offer - £50 off Ballygowan Furniture

Best Buy for May

Lakeside Recommends... Phostrogen

Plant of the Month for May - Rhododendrons & Azeleas

Garden Club Exclusive Offer - £50 off Ballygowan Furniture

Best Buy for May

Lakeside Recommends... Phostrogen

Plant of the Month for May - Rhododendrons & Azeleas

Garden Club Exclusive Offer - £50 off Ballygowan Furniture

Latest news from Lakeside

Landscaping with hydrangeas

How to grow Sunflowers