Border plants

Willson.S

Morning all, 

New fence and border have been installed on the driveway, planted an English Yew which will become a box hedge at the start of the driveway. 

I am looking for some advice/guidance on what to plant in the border, it is quite shaded and 47cm in width and we don’t want anything hanging over into the gravel. 

Ideas? 

Fairygirl

Not a lot of room there. I think you'll have to go for things that like dry-ish shade, depending on how much rain naturally gets into  the bed, although there's a lot of planting on the other side too, so it's probably going to be dry.
Hardy geraniums will be fine once established, ferns, saxifrages, ajuga, lots of spring bulbs - which would be fine among those plants too.
Iberis - the perennial candytuft, might be ok. Mine is in damper soil, but it could be fine in drier soil too. You could possibly check that. 

Arthur1

If you are averse to having plants hanging over the gravel then you will need more upright smallish plants like aquilegia. Sprawlers will give a softer more natural effect though. Remember that plants like Hardy geranium can be cut back to ground level once/rwice/three times a year. This keeps them neat.
Temporary bedding plants might look good there too.

Willson.S

thank you @Fairygirl and @Kate 7 very helpful, I love the variety of colours those suggestions bring! In terms of planting, I’m guessing it’s past the right time? 

Busy-Lizzie

It's fine if you buy them in pots and keep them watered.

Plantminded

If you want some height, Euonymus fortunei is a possibility - either the green variety or one of the many variegated varieties.  The Japanese grass, Hakonechloa macra, would also tolerate those conditions once established - again there's a green version and a couple of variegated versions. It has a cascading habit which will soften the edge of your border but it won't swamp the driveway if you divide it when it fills the space.  The Euonymus is evergreen so you will have interest in Winter too.  Interplanting with some spring bulbs and hardy geraniums will give you additional interest and colour in Spring and Summer.

Fairygirl

Yes - no problem to plant potted item at any time of year. Just keep an eye on the watering 
Another useful plant for height is Japanese anemone, but they can sometimes get a bit 'keen' if they like the spot. Polemonium [Jacob's Ladder] is another easy vertical perennial - the white one is particularly good for shade and will self seed readily too. 

Some of the evergreen euonymus already mentioned are very handy to give you something of height there in winter, rather than having bare soil, and if you add some of the evergreen low growing groundcover, that will give you all year round interest. You might be able to add some cyclamen too for autumn/winter colour. There are various types - some are hardy and some aren't, so just check. The autumn crocus are also good.

Slow-worm

Astrantia
Poppies
Toadflax
Foxgloves

Arthur1

Something like green Hakonechloa, repeated down the border, would help to 'tie' the planting. Its already been suggested, its a fantastic plant.

Lizzie27

I was going to suggest heuchera as a nice tidy plant which doesn't spread all over the place and looks good most of the year. Some of the red/orange/yellow/lime green ones would be colourful. However they have become quite expensive to buy - at least they are in this area and you have quite a long border to cover.

Willson.S

Thank you all so much for the suggestions! I don’t know where to start now haha, are plants ok being put closely together, don’t want any arguments 🤪 (dead plants). I am visual learner so if anyone has any links to websites or videos that could give me direction on how to make it look aesthetically pleasing I would be truly grateful!