Formal planting

Hi am looking for suggestions on a planting scheme. It's a formal border round a raised pond. Path on one side, lawn on the other.

We like a uniform formal approach but don't want box or yew here as we have it elsewhere. We are thinking a strip of lavender on on lawn side, strip of alchemilla mollis on path side and between the strips evenly spaced tall "feature" plants like allium.

Any thoughts on this? For the lavender we have used hidcote before but we had 70% fail so wasn't a happy experience. Any lavender suggestions that are hard wearing and easy to grow!

My other anxiety is what about all year round? Lavender looks nice when not in flower so that's all good year round. Alliums don't feature for long so anything else like alliums that will give all year benefit?

Thoughts very welcome :-) thank you!

 

Lavender is a scruffy plant, dunno if that fits in with your "uniform formal" definition?

I bought some off van Meuwen as tiny plug plants (grew on and planted out following spring). There have offers from time to time if you buy plenty - I think I bought 100 or so. Worked out about 20p each I think. I think they are L. Munstead.

Euonymous? A decent range of variegated forms that should give you a choice of some that appeal

 

I'd better take a look at how they've done it 'coz mine looks "uneven" in shape. I'm happy with it like that, but I don't think I've seen it clipped to a geometric shape. It would look nice like that though.