Lavender and Buddleia Garden v Hydrangeas

I decided to create a new thread here as a follow on from my thread in New Gardeners, the idea being that more people may see it here and hence more ideas and advice for me to take on board. I've added the links to Photbucket.

So, having looked at pics online and having had a think about what I am capable of achieving ( bearing in mind I am not terribly good at gardening and have managed to 'create ' the mess in the photos ) I'm thinking that a Lavender and/or Buddleia garden would look good. I have some gravel and rockery stones that I can use too. I already have some Lavender and a Buddleia in pots so I know they will tolerate the winds and salty air. But, I'm undecided whether to plant directly into the soil or plant into pots. Some of the pics I looked at were of potted gardens and they did look very pretty. If I choose the latter I will need to remove some of the top soil from the bank to level it a bit more. My other thought was Hydrangeas. I just love them. There are several already planted in the garden and one that I put into a pot. However, all are in relatively sheltered postions. The bank out front is south/west facing and catches all the weather we get in the winter months. So, I'm wondering if planting the bank with Hydrangeas will work? Some advice/ideas would be much appreciated please.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a128/flavrat66/bank.jpg
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a128/flavrat66/bank1.jpg

 

I would have expected Hydrangeas to prefer some shade - particularly if you want a variety of them, rather than all-the-same.

I don't know where you are (can you put your location in your profile pls?) but Hydrangeas come into leaf very early in the year, so exposed / windy / cold / wet locations not ideal either.

Lavender prefers poor soil, with good drainage (like a bank ). Buddleia will grow in the crack of a wall so I would think that they are ideal for your dry-looking?? bank, I doubt it would need improving at all, unless you need to raise the level.

I wouldn't have a container garden if you paid me. Far too much work watering and feeding, and heartache if you go away and your stand-in doesn't know the exact ins and outs of watering and half, or even one, of them dies as a consequence ...

However ... what flowering period would you have? English Lavender flowers from about now for perhaps a month, but come mid August you need to cut it back and it looks like a skinhead for a while after that!

French Lavender will repeat flower (if you cut off the old flowers), but it is less hardy - again, I think the free drainage of the bank would help

I think Lavender looks fabby as an edge plant - so a row either along the top, or bottom (depending which side your house is)

Buddleia will flower for quite a while.

Combination of colours for Lavender and Buddleia might require a bit of thought. Buddleia comes in Lavender colour, as standard , but I think it would be more fun to get some better colours - either really dark, like Dark Knight (variety name is from memory) or White. There are some bi-coloured ones too (I hate them, but they sell, so I am probably in the minority!)

 

I've now managed to clear the bank of most of the weeds - what fun that was I have been given a large, cast iron, roll top bath and a small belfast sink. So, I'm considering using the bath and sink as features, sort of a garden within a garden. I looked at pics online of old baths used as flower planters and was surprised at how good they can be made to look. I need some inspiration for plants as not really sure what to use, for the bath and directly into the bank. Lavender, as I have already mentioned, and maybe Buddleia. Anyone got any suggestions please?