What Can I Plant Here

[art600]

I have a raised bed that is bordered by a row of the neighbours conifers - may be Leylandii.

At the moment I have a wonderful display of bulbs - snowdrops, crocus, tulips, cyclamen.  At the front of the bed there are heathers and aubretia will be in bloom for the summer.

Once the bulbs are over, only the heathers (becoming increasingly woody) and aubretia are left.

The bed receives lots of sun.

What shrubs or bulbs could I plant to ensure all round colour

[Paul T]

Art,

Salvias spring to mind.  There are different types that flower at different times of year, ranging from almost ground-cover types to those which are tall and straight (so they sit up above things without taking up much ground space.

If wanting more of the bulbs, try some of the dwarf types of dahlias..... they'll flower through until the first frost, Liliums can flower until late summer depending on the type, then summer/autumn bulbs such as Amaryllis belladonna, Sternbergia, Zephyranthes etc.  Another possiblity is Hemerocallis (daylilies) which flower spring through autumn depending on the variety, and if you choose the fully deciduous ones there is nothing there at all during winter when your other stuff is flowering.

All this of course depends how cold you get during winter and whether these actually suit your climate, but there are a couple of things to get the ideas rolling.

[art600]

Thanks Paul

Lots of favourites there

[Joakim B]

Art nice place You have there and many nice suggestions from Paul.
Before I read his suggestions I thought of Iris of the bearded type. They like it a bit dryish. The Hemerocallis might want to have water during the summer and so do Dahlias I think and that might not work well with some of the bulbs. At least this is my experience in sunny? Portugal.Here the daylillies need to be watered to grow and flower well. while the Iris do not need any water but get it anyway to grow even better. The tall/ not so tall foliage of the Iris might be nice against the conifers.
Just a suggestion.
Daylillies start already now and go on for a while. Look for the reblooming ones like Stella D Ouro or similar. They are small and gives a lot of flowers sometimes a third show comes almost just before the winter cold takes it.

Good luck
Kind regards
Joakim

[ChrisB]

Art, I agree with Paul, salvias will grow well in dry soil, flower later in summer, and love to bake in the sun.  Living in Kent, you cannot be far away from Dyson's - their salvia collection is wonderful.  I know you will get some good ones from them.  They are a nursery within Great Comp.  Salvia chamaedryoides would be a good start, and should romp through the ?heathers I see hanging over the wall, but there are many more, wonderful colours too!  You could pay a visit to the Bretts too, they have some rather nice diascias they sell.  Can't remember the name of their nursery, but it is also somewhere in Kent, and they wrote a very nice article for the SRGC Journal about five years ago after their visit to South Africa, so maybe someone here will be able to help find out where they are.  Another genus that might be appropriate is Iris, dwarf bearded ones will flower after your bulbs, and before the salvias get going.

[art600]

Thanks Joakim and Chris.  First chance to read your suggestions following my return from Iran.

I know the Bretts, we are members of the same AGS Group, and will ask them for suggestions from their vast collection of plants.  The Salvia collection at Great Comp is excellent and I bought some last year, although not for this bed.

I had intended getting rid of the heathers as they are old and woody, but I am glad I did not as they provide colour for such a long time.

As most of the bulbs need splitting up, I think I will dig over the whole bed, retain the aubretia that flowers all summer, start with fresh heathers and incorporate some dwarf Iris and some Salvias.

[Lampwick]

Hi Art,
I would think that you neighbors Leylandii would take up much of the moisture and nutrients in the soil, but it also appears that you also have the advantage of not growing your plants at ground level, and if you have incorporated good humus rich compost in the raised bed a number of plants will do well there. Try Acaena, Aethionema, Anthyllis, Campanula, Cotoneaster, Helianthemum, Lithodora, Phlox and Sedum. I also had such a bed, with my neighbors Leylandii behind it, and grew the plants above with success. I used to also give the bed a slow release low nitrogen feed. 

About 15 years ago my old neighbors moved, and the new ones took down the Leylandii hedge.

 

[art600]

Thanks for the additional suggestions.

Can but hope that the neighbours move...eventually.