Flowers and Plants for New Garden

Hi


I am a novice gardener with just a rudimentary knowledge. I have just landscaped the gardens at the front and back of my house following a full refurbishment, using turf and am currently busy establishing the lawns. (See Photos)


Although I have a number of relatively narrow boarder areas, which I may widen, I am looking to fill these with plants and flowers that will add an abundance of colour throughout the seasons and will not require replacing each year. I would be really obliged if contributors could advise what kind of plants and flowers would be best suited for this purpose and where I could acquire such products cheaply.


All advice would be gratefully received.

 

You have done a great job so far. What type of soil do you have and how much sun? I am on clay mostly and grow Hydrangea, fushia and rhodedendron. All perennial but the rhodedendron has leaves all year. They grow to a good size too, large bush. Are you considering topiary?

 

Thanks for the response.

The front garden is new top soil to a depth of about 200mm, although under that the soils has some clay. the back is very similar. I suppose i am looking for plants and flowers that will be easy to maintain and are manageable. The lawn will take ongoing attention, so I would like plants that do grow too big. Its not really my intention to undertake topiary, as I am also planning to grow some tomatoes and perhaps peppers in my greenhouse.

 

You could grow an evergreen clematis or jasmine up the fence panels. Hebe grow well with lovely flowers keeping its leaves through winter (mild). Plant and leave to do their thing. There are roses a plenty just watch out for disease. I suppose it applies to every plant. Are you looking for fragrance and attracting wildlife? Roses and jasmine will have lovely perfume. A butterfly bush is lovely but They may need some taming. You could consider fruit. Do you have any particular flowers that you like?

 

I'd be a nosy neighbour too and see what is growing well in your area. Welcome to the forum btw.

 

Nice work so far. How deep are the borders?

 

I suppose I could start with daffodils and tulips just to give a splash of colour for now. I like the idea of planting bulbs as the flowers can ben managed. Where is the best place to get these, as I know garden centers can be quite expensive

 

The boarders are not very wide currently, perhaps 9" - 11" . I do intend to trim them back once the turf is established.

 

Hi there, it would help with the suggestion if you could let us know the area you are in or at least the average temperatures.

 

I live in St Helens, which is in Merseyside. Hope this helps.

 

Welcome to Gardeners Corner Clemenza. You've made a great job of your gardens and with the hard work out of the way the best part begins now, planting it up. It is to late to plant daffodils and tulips for this year as they're spring flowering, that will be an autumn job for you.

If you want to plant shrubs it would be best to widen your borders as these will need more room than the current width, I appreciate you have to wait for your lawn to settle. Trees suited to your soil would give the garden a feeling of height, they could be planted in the lawn along with large shrubs. I suspect also that you would like flowering plants that are low maintenance, so your choice would be mainly perennials, plants that grow and flower every year. For quick colour this summer your choice would be annuals, meaning they live and flower for one year or summer season.

It's difficult to point you in any particular direction for plants so I would suggest you spend time looking around local nurseries/garden centres to give you ideas. Your soil although covered with topsoil will be classed as clay as the roots of shrubs and trees will grow down well beyond it into the base soil which is clay. Take the time to read labels of plants and check their garden needs regarding their height, spread, soil etc. it's also good to take note of certain plants so that you can look them up at home to see if they suit your garden.

 

Excellent post @Sheal, nail on head!

 

Thank you Charlie.

 

Thanks ever so much for a comprehensive reply.

 

You're welcome Clemenza.