Any ideas?

JulieH3

 hi,  I've just had the patio extended to be 3 interlocking circles.  The builders made an error in measuring one and we've ended up with a gap between the lawn and the circle, which we were going to simply sow lawn seed onto, but then I thought I could put some more interesting grasses on it.  What do you think?

K67

Depends how good you are at edging the lawn. I would think any grass you plant there would end up flopping onto the lawn and get mown over
If you want to go for it the everedge stuff is good and keeps a sharp line or one I used was by smartedge and worked a treat. How about some scented plants or maybe a box hedge ? Or  plants in containers which you could sink in the ground a little way but would raise the plants up. If you used the lawn edging you could put gravel or cobbles or slate to cover the bare soil.

Nollie

If you do go for planting I agree an edging material would help keep it neat, but maybe low-growing herbs like thyme might be nice, which won’t mind being a bit bashed by the mower. If your display of pots on the patio is permanent rather than a temporary storage place, I wouldnt plant anything too high or you will end up trampling it getting to the pots to water them.

jblockhart

A combination of gravel and planting could be effective. A thick layer of gravel with thymes, chamomile, alchemilla mollis or wild strawberries dotted about could be attractive. I am also a big fan of box and yew hedging for borders. Miniature/patio roses?

JulieH3

Thanks you 3. Good point about the grasses falling over. Before this i had been thinning about whether to extend the actual border out into the lawn,  almost up to the circle.  I may reconsider that instead.

Fire

I would go for Meadow mat.

Fairygirl

I'd agree with James - some low growing plants which won't mind the odd haircut now and again. Dianthus would also be nice [scented] if you want to sit out there, assuming your soil is suitable for them.
 A hedge might be a bit fussy, although it would certainly set off the lawn and hard landscaping, but it depends how much time you have to keep it trimmed and tidy, and what the access to those patio areas are like 

JulieH3

I'm trying to post a wider pic so you can see but it wants me to resize, which is outside my technical ability,  so far.  I'm not a low hedge person so I wouldn't go with that.  I liked the idea of the grasses because they have some height and softness but the softness is also the downfall of the idea. The soil in the garden generally is clay but there's some concrete under a thin layer of soil, so something which likes poir soil may work

K67

Most grasses need well drained soil in sun so you would have to sort your soil out.
There are sone upright grasses but not all are evergreen, festuca is a low mound ever blue grass that you can grow from seed. When it flowers the stems are quite tall. Blood grass is another upright, how about Nandina heavenly bamboo. Black grass is very slow growing but not very tall, you could infill with that. Sorry can never spell or remember the Latin names!

Borderline

You cannot go wrong with Erigeron Karvinskianus. You could plant 4 clumps of Luzula Nivea spaced in quarters to break up the form of low mat and upright grass blades. A restricted colour scheme, but I think effective.

jblockhart

If you do go for an edging to separate the border from the lawn, then have a look at EverEdge Cor-Ten border edging. I have just installed this in the 'woodland' part of our cottage garden and it is very effective and attractive to separate the bark from the gravel areas. It is designed to rust but not corrode and quickly looks natural and aged. Mine has completely rusted after about two weeks and I am very pleased with the effect. Can post a picture if you are interested in seeing this option. Also, have you considered some low mound forming hardy geraniums? Some geraniums may be too tall or sprawling for the space, but something like 'Beth Chatto' may appeal.