Skip to content

The big you can do it sale has landed. Shop unmissable deals online & in store this spring

B&Q ClubCustomer support

How to plant bedding plants in beds & borders

Planting out bedding can add instant colour, scent and a decorative display to your garden with very little fuss.

Person using a trowel to dig a small hole in the soil, preparing to plant a yellow flower.Person using a trowel to dig a small hole in the soil, preparing to plant a yellow flower.Person using a trowel to dig a small hole in the soil, preparing to plant a yellow flower.Person using a trowel to dig a small hole in the soil, preparing to plant a yellow flower.

Pick up bedding plants in-store from B&Q in pots or trays and simply and easily transfer to your garden. It’s quick to do and doesn’t require lots of gardening expertise or tools – great if you’re new to gardening or fancy getting the kids involved.

You will need:

Step 1

Water the bedding plants well while still in their original tray or container. This gives them time to absorb the water as the bed or border is prepared.

Person wearing gloves pulling a dandelion weed out of the soil, ensuring the roots are removed.Person wearing gloves pulling a dandelion weed out of the soil, ensuring the roots are removed.Person wearing gloves pulling a dandelion weed out of the soil, ensuring the roots are removed.Person wearing gloves pulling a dandelion weed out of the soil, ensuring the roots are removed.

Step 2

Prepare the site by turning over the soil with a garden fork or spade. This will aerate it and help to break up any compacted lumps, providing a better structure for roots to grow into and allow for better drainage.

Remove weeds by hand as you go, or with a hoe, and take out any large stones.

Person using a garden fork to blend compost into the soil.Person using a garden fork to blend compost into the soil.Person using a garden fork to blend compost into the soil.Person using a garden fork to blend compost into the soil.

Step 3

Mix in a generous load of multi-purpose compost (about a bucket per square metre) and a soil improver or manure. This will enrich the soil with nutrients to help keep your plants healthy.

Fork the compost deeply so that the roots of your new plants will grow down into it in search of moisture and nutrients.

Person using a small garden trowel to dig a hole in a plant bed, preparing to plant a new plant.Person using a small garden trowel to dig a hole in a plant bed, preparing to plant a new plant.Person using a small garden trowel to dig a hole in a plant bed, preparing to plant a new plant.Person using a small garden trowel to dig a hole in a plant bed, preparing to plant a new plant.

Step 4

Use a trowel to dig a hole a little bigger than the pot or container the plant will be removed from.

Bedding needs to be planted at the same depth as it's in the pot or tray, making sure the top of the root ball is level with the soil surface. Check the hole is the right depth and add or remove soil from the bottom of the planting hole as necessary.

A plant that has been removed from its pot is placed in a previously dug hole in a plant bed, ready to be planted.A plant that has been removed from its pot is placed in a previously dug hole in a plant bed, ready to be planted.A plant that has been removed from its pot is placed in a previously dug hole in a plant bed, ready to be planted.A plant that has been removed from its pot is placed in a previously dug hole in a plant bed, ready to be planted.

Step 5

Carefully push the plant up out from its tray or pot and handle by its root ball or leaves.

Lower the plant into the prepared plot.

Two people using their hands to fill the gaps around a newly planted plant with soil.Two people using their hands to fill the gaps around a newly planted plant with soil.Two people using their hands to fill the gaps around a newly planted plant with soil.Two people using their hands to fill the gaps around a newly planted plant with soil.

Step 6

Use your hands to gently fill any gaps around the plant using more compost or surrounding soil, so that the plant is well supported whilst roots remain below the surface of the soil.

Using a metal watering can to water colourful flowers in plant pots.Using a metal watering can to water colourful flowers in plant pots.Using a metal watering can to water colourful flowers in plant pots.Using a metal watering can to water colourful flowers in plant pots.

Step 7

Water in using a watering can. Give the plant a good drink watering only the soil around the plant, not the leaves.

Step 8

Water regularly – this could be twice a day in the heat of summer (especially plants in pots or hanging baskets).

The foliage of many bedding plants acts as an umbrella, so even after rain; always check the soil around the plant to see if it still needs watering.

Step 9

Deadhead old flower heads as soon as they fade to stop your bedding plants wasting energy-producing seeds. This will encourage more new flowers and prolong your floral display.

Step 10

Strip out summer bedding when summer is over (usually after the first frost or by late September/ early October). Clear and dig over the ground while it's still warm and before it becomes too wet.

If you're planning to follow up with spring bedding, don’t worry about adding new compost - there should be plenty left over from the summer.