Suggestions for border

Hello

I am looking for suggestions for ground spreading or low spreading or non deep-rooting shrubs. I would prefer a selection of varieties that offer blooms from May to October and top out in height around 1.5 metres.

Background….

I am in Scotland, The garden is sheltered. I have dug up and tilled over a former lawn to lay down plants.

I am disappointed to discover that after digging down all of 9/12 “ or so that I hit a hard layer consisting of I will guess is clay and some pebbles. I am a fit lad but even a great deal of effort from me does not allow me to penetrate through this layer. It is dang hard to get through so I am not minded to utter any more curses and spend any more effort to break up this layer. Drainage in the area is fine.

I think I am now limited to plants/shrubs that have a spreading/lo rise aspect and or do not require deep rooting in order to anchor & thrive.

Can anyone offer me suggestions please ? I think once established the area will turn out fine.

I myself have thought about the usual suspects – crocosmia, fuschia, lavender/lavendulan, rubeckia – and hope this will do.

Thank you all for your suggestions…

 

Hello EMC

You don’t say if this is a sunny site! Or if you have acid soil....have you carried out a PH test?

Have you considered hardy geraniums? There are several varieties producing white, pink, purple, blue and red flowers. I would suggest Rozanne, spreads fast and flowers (purple/blue) all summer. Patricia equally flowers for the summer with reddish flowers. Elke (my favourite) has nice bi coloured flowers, Orion has blue, Coombland White has white and Ann Folkard has good yellow/lime green foliage and magenta flowers.
Nepeta would do well there too...semi evergreen spreading aromatic foliage with blue flowers all summer.
Osteospermums if it is sunny there....hardy ones like Cannington Roy and Tresco purple....take cuttings in summer to ensure you have plants spare if the winter hits them. Varieties of arabis, brunnera, bergenia, pulmonarias, etc too
Hemerocallis ...day lily....too would cope well there.....lots of varieties to choose from. Heucheras, tiarellas have amazing foliage, mostly evergreen and delightful pinky or white flowers in spring. Campanulas flower all summer...some are evergreen like the yellow Dicksons Gold. Salvias spread well with profuse summer flowering esp the shrubby microphylla types. Feathery Achilleas, euryops pectinata, asters like Frikartii Monch and spiky libertias like taupo sunset (evergreen yellow/gold foliage). The perennial wallflower Bowles Mauve would do well for a few years there too.
Grasses like stupa tennuisima for tactile evergreen impact, like elymus magellanicus for superb evergreen blue foliage, and sedges like carex testacea ( unique copper/olive evergreen foliage) continuing with the “grass” theme check out the evergreen black ophiopogon nigrescens for amazing colour contrast.
Shrubs like Physocarpus Diablo....this is a gently suckering shrub with attractive brown/red foliage. Euonymus like Emerald n Gold have relatively shallow roots that should look good there. Sarcoccoca....sweetbox...has evergreen foliage and powerful scent. Some of the hebes would fit in there too. The soil depth is not great really for many shrubs so I think choosing perennials is the way to go
So, a few plants from the top of my head but I’m sure others have plenty of suggestions too for a spectacular border there EMC