Humour me for a moment. Imagine your front window. There’s a box perched on the windowsill overflowing with colourful blooms, their sweet scents floating across the front lawn. Sound good? Then let me introduce you to the wonderful world of window box planting!

In every home I’ve lived in, I’ve always planted a window box by the front door. There’s something special about coming home to a bright box of flowers, or seeing your plants grow as you look out the window each morning. Window boxes are similar to hanging baskets, however they sit on your windowsill rather than hang from a fence or ceiling. The great thing about window boxes is that you can plant beautiful flowers without much space. Here are some tips if you’re not sure how to get started:

The lovely thing about window boxes is that there aren’t really any rules as to which flowers to plant. The limit is your imagination! Do keep in mind the time of year that you’re planting. I personally like to plant petunias, zinnias and geraniums in the spring/summer and pansies and chrysanthemums in the autumn/winter.

This generally depends on the size of the box. A good rule of thumb is 4 plants per 30cm. Keep in mind that your window box might look a bit sparse at first, but your flowers will grow to fill it. I like to plant tall flowers at the back, trailing foliage at the edges and shorter flowers in the middle.