Want Your Garden to be On-Trend this Summer? Purple Flowers are the Answer

If we are to take anything from this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show, it’s that purple flowers are in vogue for summer 2022. Inspired by the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, this majestic hue was everywhere at the Show and is trending in all areas, from rock gardens to hanging baskets and even window boxes.

Thankfully, purple is a colour that works well in gardens of all shapes and sizes. It comes in a variety of shades and forms from deep blue-purple leaves to pretty light purple petals. Purple is also a popular shade with bees and you’ll find a purple flower that will attract butterflies, birds and other pollinators.

On top of all that, purple flowers and plants with purple colouring go with absolutely anything. They complement dark glossy foliage well but also contrast neatly with whites and lighter shades. Purple goes with many other colours and can be used alongside bright yellows, reds and blues to create stunning floral displays.

Purple Flowers

No garden is complete without flowers. They make the garden look homely, add colour and interest and help pollinators along their way. Purple varieties make an incredible statement used either on their own or alongside other colours to create appealing displays that will be the envy of your neighbours.

Purple draws the eye and it doesn’t take a huge number of blooms to make purple appear the dominant colour. It can be mismatched with a variety of other colours for a cheerful display or planted alongside other shades of purple to create an ombre effect. However, it is just as striking when left on its own to stand out against lush green foliage.

If you’d like to incorporate purple blooms into your own garden, here is our pick of some of the best.

Purple Perennials

Perennial plants will never go out of fashion and what better way to update your garden than with one or more of these dramatic purple perennials?

Fuchsia Deltas Sarah

This gorgeous perennial features intricate star-shaped semi-double white flowers with eye-catching purple insides peeking out from under the petals. The colours contrast well and the blooms appear from early summer to September. Fuchsia Deltas Sarah thrives in pots or containers and makes excellent summer bedding plants.

Purple Roses

Classic roses are the perfect choice of flowers to add some purple hues to your outdoor space. Well suited to any garden setting, roses are instantly recognisable – yet a vibrant purple colour really makes these flowers stand out. Glossy dark green foliage perfectly complements the purple blooms of these potted rose plants, which make an instant impact and will last for years to come. They also make a fantastic cut flower and can last around a week in a vase with clean water.

Buddleia Tricolour Butterfly Bush

This Butterfly Bush comprises three deciduous shrubs intertwined to create a striking tricolour effect. The plant has a long flowering season with tiny flowers blooming in tall spires from early spring to late summer. As the name would suggest, Buddleia is perfect for butterfly gardens and will attract bees too. Plant in moist but well-drained soil in a spot that enjoys full sun or partial sun to get the most from the plant’s unusual shape and extended blooming period.

Agapanthus Silver Moon

Long stems and clusters of trumpet-shaped flowers characterise this clump-forming herbaceous perennial. The attractive light purple flowers bloom in early to mid-summer and often remain until autumn. Long thin strap-shaped leaves are variegated in a creamy yellow hue that gives a summery feel. This shrub prefers a sheltered spot in full sun and likes to be brought indoors over the winter, though it can survive planted outside in mild climates.

Allium Millennium

Also known as Millenium Flowering Onion, this upright perennial features narrow grass-like aromatic foliage with long stems blooming round clusters of tiny flowers in a delightful shade of pink-purple. This plant thrives in moist but well-drained soil and enjoys being in full sun. The delicate flowers appear in mid-summer and last until the beginning of autumn.

Purple Evergreen Plants

Evergreen plants are used to maintain privacy and add colour to outdoor spaces all year long. However, just because a plant is an evergreen in nature, doesn’t mean it has to be green in colour. Adding dark purple or reddish-purple hues into the mix will help give your garden structure and add interest throughout the year.

Ceanothus Yankee Point California Lilac

Perfect for borders and ground cover, this evergreen shrub produces blue-purple flowers that enhance the plant’s glossy green leaves. The shrub flowers from early spring to late summer and the purple blooms attract butterflies, bees and other pollinators to the garden. The bushy shrub is fast growing and its carefree nature covers ground quickly. It works well in cottage gardens or grown against garden walls.

Lavender Angustifolia

Lavender is one of the first shrubs to spring to mind when people consider purple flowering plants. This pack of 6 small evergreen shrubs will add year-round colour to the garden and is proven to be irresistible to bees. The aromatic foliage emits a strong scent throughout the garden while the small tubular flowers bloom from spring right through the summer. The blooms work well as cut flowers to add texture to the arrangements.

Vinca Minor Small Evergreen Shrub

With its vibrant green leaves and delicate purple flowers, Vinca Minor is a dwarf perennial shrub that blooms from late spring through autumn. It grows well in full sun or partial shade and is hardy against harsh winter temperatures. This is an evergreen plant that is excellent for ground cover and will add year-round colour to the garden.

Rhododendron Azurika

Another purple flowering evergreen, Rhododendron Azurika boasts green lance-shaped leaves and clusters of small bright flowers from mid to late spring. Plant in full sun or partial shade in well-drained moist soil. This low-maintenance shrub is a dwarf variety, making it a perfect option for smaller gardens.

Purple Deciduous Plants

Bursting back to life every spring, deciduous plants and shrubs are perfect for adding height and focus to gardens. While we often think of leaves changing to vivid colours in autumn, many deciduous plants can add a splash of purple glory in spring and summer too.

Clematis Jackmanii

An abundance of pretty purple flowers makes this the ideal way to add purple to the garden. As a deciduous climber, Clematis Jackmanii doesn’t take up a huge amount of space but does create an attractive focal point when trained up a fence, trellis or obelisk. It has a long blooming period with flowers appearing early in April and lasting through to September when the plant will fade until fresh growth emerges in spring.

Wisteria Sinensis Chinese Kidney Bean

This vigorous climber produces racemes of fragrant light purple flowers from late spring through summer. Sinensis can be trained to grow up garden walls and trellises and can reach up to 12m in height. A pleasant fragrance helps attract pollinators as it wafts through the garden. As the pea-shaped flowers fade, they are replaced by elongated seed pods, providing interest in autumn.

Perovskia Blue Spire Russian Sage

Perfect for borders and rock gardens, this purple flowering sub-shrub blooms from late summer to autumn with panicles of tiny purple flowers. This sage plant has similar colouring to sea thistle and is a fast grower, reaching up to 1.25m. Aromatic foliage and the density of blooms make this a great plant for attracting butterflies and pollinators. Plant in full sun in well-drained soil to help Perovskia Blue Spire Russian Sage flourish.

Syringa Miss Kim

Clusters of pale purple tiny star-shaped flowers make these spring-blooming plants a delightful addition to the garden. They thrive in well-drained soil and prefer to be planted in full sun. As a deciduous shrub, Syringa Miss Kim loses its leaves over the winter months but not before they turn a marvellous shade of scarlet red in autumn. This is a slow-growing shrub, which makes it easily manageable and great for smaller gardens.

Purple Bedding and Basket Plants

For quick and easy seasonal colour, nothing can beat bedding and basket plants. Ready to make an instant impact, these purple blooms will bring your outdoor space bang up to date.

Purple Shades – Mixed Basket Plants

This carry pack of mixed purple flowers is ideal for pots, containers and hanging baskets. It comprises a carefully selected mix of Fuchsia, Calibrachoa, Petunia and/or Verbenas that complement each other beautifully to create a charming decorative display. These plants will flower from late spring throughout the summer and arrive ready to be planted.

Plug Plants – Purple and White Shades Mix

Typically planted in flower beds, this mix of plug plants with purple and white blooms has been carefully chosen by our experts to add an instant burst of colour to the garden. The decorative flowers contrast well with each other and last all summer long. They prefer moist but well-drained soil in full sun or partial sun.

Trio Marvelous Jewel

Another wonderful option for hanging baskets, window boxes and bedding is this trio of plants with contrasting hues of deep purple, magenta pink and fresh white. This brings 3 varieties of Petunia Miss Marvelous, Calibrachoa Double Purple and Verbena Magenta together in a single pot for an envious floral display. The trio arrives in a 13cm pot, ready to be transplanted and creates instant results in your chosen spot.

Salvia Vista

Not sure what colours to pair with purple in the garden? Then let Gardeners Dream choose for you! Our selection of mixed Salvia Vista bedding plants with purple flowers includes a carefully chosen mixture of complementary colours. You’ll receive 6 plants with spike-like flowers that last from spring to autumn and create a striking display. These are long flowering blooms that produce colour from spring right through to autumn when planted in well-drained soil and in full sun.

Petunia Starfish

One of the easiest ways to incorporate purple into your outdoor space is in hanging baskets. This pack of 6 Petunia Starfish plants arrives in a recyclable tray and produces a delightful display of purple blooms with lots of flowers. The white petals feature thick purple lines to create a striking effect against lush green foliage. They are easy to plant and require very little maintenance to keep flourishing.

Purple Patio Trees

If you have a small garden or a paved patio area you’d like to enhance, each of these patio trees blooms beautiful flowers in various shades of purple. The trees won’t grow to be huge and will create an effortless focal point of an otherwise boring space.

Hibiscus Oiseau Bleu

Introducing a tree to a small garden or patio area is easier than you might think and this purple flowering Hibiscus tree makes a great feature. A deciduous ornamental tree shaped into a lollipop stem, Hibiscus Oiseau Bleu boasts glossy green foliage and violet-blue blooms with an interesting flower shape. This tree is tolerant of full sun but prefers a spot in light shade in well-drained soil.

Rhododendron Lollipop Tree

Another ornamental patio tree with beautiful purple flowers is the Rhododendron. This lush evergreen tree produces trusses of funnel-shaped flowers with glossy foliage that changes colour with the seasons. It has a sweet fragrance and, when fully mature, will reach a height of around 1m tall. Rhododendron thrives in moist but well-drained soil in a spot that enjoys full sun.

Ficus Brown Turkey

If you’re looking for something a little different from flowers, then this patio tree is for you. It produces nutritious figs, which start off green in colour before turning a triumphant shade of purple when ripe. The rich sweet fruits are ready for picking from August to September and an annual prune spring will promote fresh growth the following season. Ficus Brown Turkey prefers a sheltered spot in full sun with well-drained soil.

Purple Foliage

While the RHS Chelsea Flower Show has demonstrated how effective the colour purple can be in floral displays, purple flowers aren’t the only way to add a touch of this regal colour to your outdoor space. Purple foliage is also having a moment and is a great way to add interest in other plants.

Royal Purple Smoke Bush

This small deciduous tree is perfect for cottage gardens and boasts vibrant reddish-purple leaves that turn a mesmerising shade of deep scarlet in autumn. The dramatic foliage often appears transparent in sunlight and blossoms tiny but insignificant yellow flowers in spring. Once established, Cotinus Coggygria is drought tolerant and requires little to no pruning, making it incredibly easy to care for. It will grow in partial shade but flourishes best when planted in full sun.

Euphorbia amygdaloides Ruby Glow

This compact herbaceous plant features mounds of leathery reddish-purple leaves that turn to a deep purple hue with the changing of the seasons. In spring it blooms clusters of little flowers in a beautiful yellow-green colour, giving the plant its ‘Ruby Glow’. Also known as Wood Spurge, this plant has a bushy habit and thrives in full sun or partial shade. It can grow up to a metre tall and provides colour and interest all through the year.

Sempervivum Plum Parfait

A hardy evergreen succulent, Sempervivum Plum Parfait forms rosettes of waxy, rich purple leaves all year round. Native to warmer climates, this plant is drought tolerant and likes a spot in full sun where it can soak up warmth. In the right conditions, this is a fast-growing plant that is excellent for ground cover in dry sunny spots. With its year-round colour and interesting structure, this succulent makes a great addition to borders and flowerbeds but also works well in pots and containers providing they have good drainage.

Indoor Purple Plants

Gardening trends aren’t limited to the outdoors! The fashion for plants with purple accents can also be brought inside and used to inspire your choice of houseplants.

In fact, as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, colour is taking over interior design trends in 2022, with purple hues high in popularity. From rich deep amethysts to light airy lilacs, purple can add a playful touch to the home as well as being alluring and mindful.

Embrace both garden and interior colour trends in your choice of houseplants for maximum impact with minimal effort.

Tradescantia Zebrina

Also known as Wandering Dude, Inch Plant or Spiderwort, this striking houseplant features glossy green leaves with deep purple colouring on each leaf. This versatile plant can be grown in a hanging basket to display its trailing foliage. Alternatively, it can be kept bushy and compact in a pot. It is easy to care for but doesn’t like dry soil, so keep it moist but well-drained. The interesting foliage may scorch in full sun but when placed in indirect sunlight this plant will thrive.

Calathea Ornata – Pinstripe

Characterised by large green leaves with a pinstripe effect and a glorious reddish-purple underside, Calathea Ornata enjoys a bright spot out of the full sun. Another plant that doesn’t like dry soil, is water Calathea Ornata when the top soil no longer feels moist. This plant is native to South America and is part of the Prayer Plant family. As such, you’ll notice its leaves close together in the evenings – like a pair of hands in prayer – displaying the purple colouring in all its glory.

Calathea Crocata

Long metallic green leaves with dark purple undersides give way to bright yellow and orange flowers, adding a tropical feel to your home. The flowers bloom for 2-3 months and are the reason Calathea Crocata is also known as Eternal Flame. However, the purple flushed foliage makes this a striking plant, even when not in bloom. This plant is a shade lover and prefers a location in the partial shade out of the full sun. It also likes humidity, making it a great choice for kitchens and bathrooms.

This year’s trend for purple flowers is great for both new and experienced gardeners to get on board. Whether you decide to go full-on with blooms, shrubs and trees or simply jazz up some baskets, pots or containers, there is something here for everyone.

Here at Gardeners Dream, we have a wide selection of purple blooms and plants to choose from. We have something to suit every outdoor space from patios and balconies to country gardens and even sensory gardens.

Our friendly team is on hand to offer expert advice and guidance if required and we offer free UK delivery on all orders.