You’ll find below a list of plants which are reliable and work hard in the garden. In our small gardens, plants need to earn their keep although there’s no harm in having a few ‘show stoppers’ or favourites which you like even if they don’t flower for long. I find that it’s good to have plants which, as far as is possible, give you year-round interest and which have a variety of shapes (form and function) – very welcome in the winter months.
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Season/Aspect |
Trees for domestic gardens
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Shrubs |
Perennials/Climbers |
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Year-round interest |
Amelanchier lamarckii or Amelanchier canadensis Cornus kousa Malus ‘Wedding Bouquet’ Malus trilobata Cercis canadensis ‘Forest Pansy’ Prunus ‘Sunset Boulevard’ Prunus serrula (needs a bit of space) |
Photinia x fraseri ‘Red Robin’ Viburnum x burkwoodii Pittosporum varieties . (e.g. tenuifolium ‘Tom Thumb’, Pittosporum tobira) Skimmia japonica ’Kew Green’ Fatsia japonica Phormium varieties Laurus nobilis Euonymus varieties Nandina domestica |
Rose varieties Trachelospernum jasminoides Jasminum polyanthum Clematis varieties (these all fit into the sunny aspect box too)
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Autumn/Winter interest |
Acer grisseum (lovely bark) Acer palmatum Betula utilis (bit big for a domestic garden but lovely bark) |
Hamamelis mollis Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’ + others Acers too in this box Euonymus alatus Edgeworthia chrysantha grandiflora |
Pyracantha ‘Orange Glow’ |
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Sunny aspect |
All good for a sunny aspect |
All plants in first box are good for a sunny aspect |
Spring/early summer Rose varieties Jasminum officinalis Wisteria sinensis e,g, ‘Alba’ Iris Germanica (bearded iris) Iris siberica Agapanthus varieties Verbena bonariensis Hardy Geraniums (cranesbills) Heuchera – many types Salvia nemerosa ‘Caradonna’ and others Alchemilla mollis Geum varieties e.g. ‘Totally Tangerine’ Potentilla varieties Paeonia varieties Papaver orientalis (e.g. Patty’s Plum) Euphorbia varieties Lavandula (Hidcote variety is good) Astrantia varieties e.g. ‘Major’, ‘Ruby Wedding’, ‘Roma’ Hydrangea anomala ‘Petiolaris’
Late summer/autumn Sedum (new name: Hylotelephium telephium) Rudbeckia Goldstrum Dahlia varieties Penstemon varieties Echinacea purpurea (beware as also loved by slugs!) Grasses Schizostylis (new name -Hesperantha coccinea) Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ and other varieties of Crocosmia Cosmos Ceratostigma willmottianum Verbena bonariensis Salvia guaranitica ‘Purple Flowered’ or Salvia Amistad, ‘Hot Lips’ …so many types Sambucus nigra ‘Silver Lace’ Hemerocallis varieties Nepeta x faassenii Centranthus ruber (seeds easily so need to keep on top of it) |
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Shady sheltered aspect – can tolerate dry conditions |
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Sarcococca confusa Daphne odora aureomarginata
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Heuchera ‘Lime Marmalade’ and Heucherella varieties Brunnera macrophyla Geranium phaeum Geranium sylvaticum Hellebores Digitalis varieties Anemone x hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ Eurybia divaricata |
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Shady/partial shade aspect – moist soil but good drainage |
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Acer disseticum or palmatum varieties Daphne odora Euonymus varieties Buxus sempervirens (beware the box moth caterpillar which can devastate plants) Edgeworthia chrysantha grandiflora |
Ferns Tellima grandiflora Iris siberica Hosta (though loved by slugs) Gillenia trifoliata Astrantia ‘Shaggy’ Heuchera ‘Lime Marmalade’ Hellebores Epimedium
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Once trees, shrubs and perennials are all planted then there is the fun part of choosing and planting bulbs for all seasons! It’s good to have herbs too if you like cooking with fresh herbs J
Henrietta Ogbonna
April 2021
Mantilla Rd has been very inspired by the planting of your roundabout and all the gardening info on this site. We are in the process of starting an embryonic guerilla group to plant the green spaces at the top of Mantilla Rd. Thanks for leading the way.