Thank folks. Sad to say very few of the suggestions float my boat.
Alliums I have in plenty as I collect them (and if you see one called Allium wallichii then go for it 2 feet tall purple ball with nice leaves in August/September).
Anything the slightest bit less than totally hardy dies here in winter, so Agastache ,and Agapanthus are no use. We have lost all our Hebes over the last few years, even the ones I grew from wild collected seed. Parahebe seems to survive though so I may propagate that and out it in.
Oh and Anemone japonica....shudder. Been pouring Round up on it for 20 years and still it comes back and invades every plant round it.
Awkward cuss ain't I? But at least it shows I have thought about what we want.
aym280 - That butterfly root is lovely, you've inspired me to go and buy some right now!
Berghill - How about yellow Corydalis? It likes the partial shade underneath a tree, shouldn't really need watering and should be hardy right down to about -15. Best of all, slugs don't usually touch it!
Another simple option, if you want bees, is to grow some hardy Lavender.
You might also consider growing something that isn't perennial but which self-sows and returns year on year. Nastertiums- particularly good for butterflies- are as good as anything I know for this, plus after a few years they'll cross pollinate and you get a good mixture of your own unique flowers.
This is the border, the right hand side of this picture. The left side is also a narrow border, but not as badly over taken by Geraniums...........yet!
I am surprised it is only the Geraniums you want to replace as I notice the bane of my life - Crocosmia - flourishing in the left hand border of your garden. Still trying after 30 years to get rid of them from mine. They remind me of that advert on tv when the weeds keep leaping up and shouting 'Woohoo' at the poor gardener!
Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
Someone suggested planting Crocosmia in plant pots before putting them in flower beds i.e. sinking the pot half full of Crocosmia into the flower bed, which I duly did about 18 months ago. The plants are flourishing but not spreading - no problem. I will try to take a picture if you wish to see them.
Sadly I inherited these GD but what a good idea. It is supposed to work for mint too but mine did the sneaky and crept out through the drainage hole! Luckily mint is easier to control than Crocosmia
Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
Yes Ladybird, we made the mistake of planting mint directly into our veg. patch. Within a couple of years it had spread beyond the limits of the patch and into the lawn and it did take many years to finally eradicate it. I do like Crocosmia, but ideally it needs space to spread. This pictures shows another batch of crocosmia which isplanted at the end of our driveway where I decided not to plant them in pots but to let it grow more freely. However in the flower bed it is firmly planted in a large pot to contain it's growth (I hope).
I remember seeing that picture on one of your earlier posts and I was almost tempted to leave a patch. Almost as if apologising, mine have put on a rather beautiful display this year. If only the leaves didn't droop over everything else and the little corms spread out underground. Hey ho I'm resigned to having some of these forever so I will just grin and bear it. I have to give them 10 out of 10 for persistence and indestructibility.
Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
Posts
Thank folks. Sad to say very few of the suggestions float my boat.
Alliums I have in plenty as I collect them (and if you see one called Allium wallichii then go for it 2 feet tall purple ball with nice leaves in August/September).
Anything the slightest bit less than totally hardy dies here in winter, so Agastache ,and Agapanthus are no use. We have lost all our Hebes over the last few years, even the ones I grew from wild collected seed. Parahebe seems to survive though so I may propagate that and out it in.
Oh and Anemone japonica....shudder. Been pouring Round up on it for 20 years and still it comes back and invades every plant round it.
Awkward cuss ain't I? But at least it shows I have thought about what we want.
aym280 - That butterfly root is lovely, you've inspired me to go and buy some right now!
Berghill - How about yellow Corydalis? It likes the partial shade underneath a tree, shouldn't really need watering and should be hardy right down to about -15. Best of all, slugs don't usually touch it!
Another simple option, if you want bees, is to grow some hardy Lavender.
You might also consider growing something that isn't perennial but which self-sows and returns year on year. Nastertiums- particularly good for butterflies- are as good as anything I know for this, plus after a few years they'll cross pollinate and you get a good mixture of your own unique flowers.
This is the border, the right hand side of this picture. The left side is also a narrow border, but not as badly over taken by Geraniums...........yet!
I am surprised it is only the Geraniums you want to replace as I notice the bane of my life - Crocosmia - flourishing in the left hand border of your garden. Still trying after 30 years to get rid of them from mine. They remind me of that advert on tv when the weeds keep leaping up and shouting 'Woohoo' at the poor gardener!
Someone suggested planting Crocosmia in plant pots before putting them in flower beds i.e. sinking the pot half full of Crocosmia into the flower bed, which I duly did about 18 months ago. The plants are flourishing but not spreading - no problem. I will try to take a picture if you wish to see them.
Sadly I inherited these GD but what a good idea. It is supposed to work for mint too but mine did the sneaky and crept out through the drainage hole! Luckily mint is easier to control than Crocosmia
Yes Ladybird, we made the mistake of planting mint directly into our veg. patch. Within a couple of years it had spread beyond the limits of the patch and into the lawn and it did take many years to finally eradicate it. I do like Crocosmia, but ideally it needs space to spread. This pictures shows another batch of crocosmia which is
planted at the end of our driveway where I decided not to plant them in pots but to let it grow more freely. However in the flower bed it is firmly planted in a large pot to contain it's growth (I hope).
Last edited: 09 August 2016 20:45:51
I remember seeing that picture on one of your earlier posts and I was almost tempted to leave a patch. Almost as if apologising, mine have put on a rather beautiful display this year. If only the leaves didn't droop over everything else and the little corms spread out underground. Hey ho I'm resigned to having some of these forever so I will just grin and bear it. I have to give them 10 out of 10 for persistence and indestructibility.
At least they survive the onslaught of the geraniums.
Here's a few of my fav low growing bee friendly plants, all seem to be hardy up here in chilly Northumberland
Penstemon
Eryngium
Salvias (especially the blue / purple ones!)
Echinacea
Oregano and Marjoram
Catmint
Lavender
Astrantia
Red campion
Bladder campion
Hyssop
Campanula
Centurea
Jacobs ladder
Dianthus
Ox-eye daisy
Forget me nots
Iberis sempervirens (popular with butterflies too!)
Liatris
Sedum Spectabile
Stachys
Erigeron Karvinskianus (this is one of my fav plants at the moment, flowers forever!!)
Hope that helps