What should I plant?

Hi,

First post here, so hope I've put it in the right bit! I am hoping for some planting advice.

I have a wall running along the front of my house which is south facing. It is a stone wall, with a trough in the top, which is about eight inches wide and six inches deep. I currently use this trough to keep my weeds in, and house my ants.

I was hoping for some planting suggestions for this wall that are not ivy (as so far this is my only success in this spot apart from the weeds) preferably ant resistant. I would like the plant to be low lying, provide year round leaf cover, something that flowered in the summer would be a big bonus.

I hope this isn't too much to ask! Has anyone got any suggestions? Many thanks to all for reading. Nina

 

Hi Nina, welcome to GC.


So the area is relatively shady? And you mean the bed on teh inside of the wall and not the trough at the top?

If you mean the bed then


Rhododendrons, azaleas and pieris should do well there, as well as the seemannii hydrangea-this is also a climber).


You will have to deal with the ants if they are too troublesome as they can dislodge the soil around the roots of any plant causing it to die.

 

Hi nina and welcome.

If the wall is full of weeds, the roots will find their way into nooks and crannies of the wall and they are impossible to dig out, especially if there is grass there. The only sure way to get rid of them is by spraying with glyphosate. The only probem with this method is that you will have to wait for the weeds to die completely before re-planting and this will be about 4 weeks.

Whichever way you decide, once the wall is weed-free, top up the soil in the trough with good garden soil, or compost mixed with grit. Then you can go down to the garden centre and buy anything that says 'rockery plant' on the label. There are dozens to choose from and most flower. With things like sedums, you can push them sideways into any gaps in the wall.

If you really want to get rid of the ants, you can get these ant traps, they lure the ants in with tasty poison which they then take back to their nest. However, I have ants and tiny bees in my wall and they don't seem to harm the plants so I just leave them.

 

Many thanks for your replies. My husband and I are planning waging war on the weeds and ants this weekend (weather permitting), the planting tips were very much appreciated. Thanks again, Nina