When the days get longer again and the temperatures rise, it's time to plant the balcony boxes with spring bloomers. A colorful blaze of colors lifts the mood after the dark winter days.
Which spring bloomers are suitable for balcony boxes?
Cushion flower, candytuft, golden spurge and pasque flower are suitable for sunny balconies. For shady balconies, diligent lizard, fuchsia, tuberous and hanging begonias as well as various grasses and ferns are recommended. Make sure there is sufficient watering and weekly fertilization.
General preparations
Before planting, the flower boxes must be checked for damage and, if necessary, replaced. Holes in the bottom of the box are very important. If they are dirty or even clogged, cleaning is necessary. The holes ensure that rain or irrigation water can drain unhindered so that the boxes do not become waterlogged. Waterlogging is generally not tolerated by the early bloomers. If the flower boxes are OK, suitable soil (€10.00 on Amazon) is selected and filled. Normal potting soil or potting soil that does not contain a lot of peat is suitable for balcony flowers. Peat makes the soil acidic and early bloomers in particular don't tolerate this well.
Which flowers are suitable for spring planting?
A colorful potpourri can be selected to suit your taste from the abundance of early bloomers. If it gets quite cool at night, pansies and horned violets can be planted first. They come in a wide variety and the plants can tolerate even light frost.
The sunny balcony
Only flowers that can tolerate many hours of sunshine every day should be planted here. For example, the following flowers thrive from April/May:
- the cushion flower or the blue cushion with blue flowers
- the candytuft with white flowers
- the golden spurge with a yellow flower
- the pasque flower with delicate purple flowers
The shady balcony
Even balconies that are mostly or completely in the shade do not need to do without plants. Suitable for shade include:
- the busy Lieschen or Noble Lieschen with white to red flowers
- the fuchsia with its delicate, hanging bells
- the tuberous and hanging begonia
- various grasses and ferns
No matter which early bloomer you choose, what is important is regular and sufficient watering, as well as a weekly application of liquid fertilizer.
Plan spring planting in autumn
If you don't want to plant anything in your balcony box in spring, you should take precautions in autumn. Many bulb flowers can already be planted in the ground. However, care must be taken to ensure that the onions are winter hardy. Crocuses, snowdrops, anemones, winter aconites, March cups and delicate wild tulips herald spring on the balcony from February.
