Tips from ‘Floratopia’ on transforming your garden into a blooming wonderland

The second week of April is the time to pot up those empty window boxes and patio pots. This also is a good week to research some garden inspiration and make a list of colorful new plants to try in your garden.

A new book out called “Floratopia” by Jan Johnson and published by Countryman Press is full of luscious photographs and skillful designs using a floral abundance to transform any landscape into a blooming wonderland. This hardcover book is priced at $30 and organized into chapters such as “Flowers in Pots and Planters” and “Themes for Flower Gardens” with the subtitle “110 Flower Garden Ideas for Your Yard, Patio or Balcony.”

Early spring planting idea

Floratopia suggests you fill a patio pot this week with annual flowers that can handle the cold spring weather such as nemesia, pansies, violas and white alyssum. Nemesia is an annual with orchid-like blooms that comes in Easter egg colors of yellow, pink and lavender. You can find this cool season bloomer at local nurseries now and if you remember to fertilize, they can be kept in bloom all summer long.

Planting for butterflies

Tip #71 in the Floratopia book is called ‘‘Open House For Butterflies’’ and because this book is packed with color photographs on every page, the image of the ‘Torch’ or Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia) hosting a monarch butterfly will inspire you to add this orange annual flower to your planting scheme along with the recommended zinnias and echinacea or purple coneflower.

April is also Native Plant Month in Washington state

To celebrate Native Plant Month, there will be events and seminars that you can find out about at www.wnps.org This site also will inform you about native plant sales in your area.

Adding more salal, huckleberry, sword ferns and other native plants is a wonderful way to support our pollinators and wildlife, plus use less water, less pesticides and less fertilizers in your landscape.