Stuck for planting inspiration? Here's a spring pot you can plant now

Give your patio a boost with a colourful spring container. The star in this container is the perennial wallflower 'Super Bowl Mauve', a more compact and early flowering relative of 'Bowles's Mauve'. It flowers continually from May to August and attracts a variety of pollinators. The wallflower is surrounded by pretty pink dianthus and deep purple violas. The silvery foliage of the senecio provides a calm contrast to the colourful blooms. Place this container in a sunny spot and enjoy the long lasting display – it should perk up your patio until at least August.

If you can't find the exact plants, don't worry, just swap them for something similar in colour or flower shape. Once the flowers go over the container can be refreshed for autumn. If you decide to change the plants, the wallflower and dianthus can go into your border where they'll flower again next year. Violas and senecio are usually treated as annuals and will need to be replaced once temperatures drop.

What you'll need:

Erysimum 'Super Bowl Mauve' x 3
Dianthus 'Peach Party' x 3
Viola 'Blue Blotch' x 3
Senecio cineraria 'Silverdust' x 3
35cm terracotta pot

Other plants for a late spring pot

Heuchera – foliage plant with leaves that come in many shades from lime green to deep purple. Makes good groundcover

Golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea' – this trailing plant has yellow cup-shaped flowers during summer but is mainly used as a filler plants for containers, softening the edges as it spills over

Forget-me-nots (Myosotis sylvatica) – a self seedling biennial that creates a cloud of blue flowers. Buy a few small plants for a container to place beneath tulips

Nepeta racemosa 'Walker's Low' – flowering from May until September, this plant offers great value, providing colour for months and attracting pollinators

Scabious – these perennials flower all through the summer, with pin cushion blooms that are usually either purple, pink or white. They are excellent pollinator plants, attracting bees and butterflies