Forum home› Plants
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Perennials with shallow or fiberous roots?

NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
in Plants
One thing that online retailers or indeed most gardening books rarely mention is what type of roots a plant has - a deep tap root to penetrate tough soils or shallow/fiberous roots for where you definitely don’t want deep penetration!

In a part of my new west facing sunny ‘oranges and lemons’ border (I am so on trend, vis that lovely Chelsea garden  B)) I have buried soil and water pipes only 30cm deep.

What can I safely plant over? Has to be reasonably drought tolerant.

So far I am thinking suitably citrus-coloured:
Achillea
Geum
Coreopsis

Another thought is I have some Salvia Verticiliata Purple Rain on order, which might make a nice contrast. I do love a bit of purple. Would that or any of the above be safe to plant over pipes?
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
«1

Posts

  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    edited May 2018
    Nollie, are the pipes protected/shielded/supported by anything or just laid as is? Where I have pipes, in my front garden, I laid some supported slabs over them, and then covered with earth; not least so I or future owners wouldn't jab them with a spade.

    Eschscholzia californica, lantana, arctotis? I'm not sure they would cope with your low winter temps.


  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    I suppose low growing, very hardy alpines might work best. Saxifraga? Low growing sedum?
  • BorderlineBorderline Posts: 4,700
    I think Coreopsis may not be that suited to your climate. What about Anthemis Tinctoria Sauce Hollandaise and Erigeron Aurantiacus, the Orange Daisy.
  • MarlorenaMarlorena Posts: 8,705
    I have lots of plants like these [I bet you're saying, ''how did I guess?'']..  I also like Coreopis, I have the variety Coreopsis Uptick Yellow & Red.. which I grow in a container. It's survived the winter ok. I have 2 of these..


    You might like Halimium libanotis.  I love this May/early June flowering plant, after which time I cut it back.  It doesn't flower after that, but at this time of year... completely drought tolerant..loves it dry..



    I believe I have pipe work going under this entire border, but I've never seen it in my diggings, perhaps it's quite deep... I hope so, but I chose most of these plants for shallow rootings, but there are roses, and their roots do go a wandering..

    East Anglia, England
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    M, where are you based?
  • MarlorenaMarlorena Posts: 8,705
    East Anglia, near King's Lynn...  it's one of the driest parts of the country so I have to account for that in my planting schemes...  I do enjoy the Mediterranean style of gardening, dry garden plants, that sort of thing, as well as roses..
    Do you enjoy plant photography?  I photograph just about everything, I take 20 or 30 photos of my plants most days, but I might keep only 2 or 3...

    Sometimes I look back on old pictures and think it looked better then, and ask why did I change it.. and often see plants that I used to have but got rid of, and now I want them back again.   I'm a plantaholic.  except I don't do seeds, wild things, weeds or trees, but if it's something from the garden centre, then I might know about it.. most of them seem to have my name on it when I get there...
    East Anglia, England
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    I love photography, yes indeed. I could spend all day photographing bees and flowers.

    Nollie has high altitude and cold winters, as well as high summer heat.
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Hi, thanks for your input and ideas everyone.

    The water pipes are a rigid, jointed plastic soil pipe plus a flexible plastic/rubber-like water supply pipe - the latter I have managed to protect with curved terracotta roof tiles but no protection on the soil pipe. Maximum of 30cm deep for both, hence shallow rooting/non-invasive roots on plants being the most critical, but yes they have to survive here too.

    The bed gets some shade from the adjoining terrace pergola and the new additions would be toward the rear, looking at the bed face-on, so more sheltered conditions, for the roots at least, than some of my other beds.

    Is it a big no, no to Achillea, Salvia etc are they too deeply rooted?

    I forgot, I also have some Crocosmia Masonorium and Emily Mackenzie, would they be ok??

    I am limited to what I have got or can get locally now as my French online supplier is virtually out of stock! The local GC does do yellow coreopsis (unnamed threadleaf variety) and various daisy-like plants but will have a look and see if they have any of your suggestions too.

    PS - Marlorena, your garden never cease to amaze me!
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • MarlorenaMarlorena Posts: 8,705
    Nollie, thank you... that's so nice..

    Your pipework would be different to mine, I don't think ours is plastic..  but apart from the roses, everything I have appears to be shallow rooted, so I think you would be alright with alpines and perennials, and most grasses too.   However, one plant that does develop a big taproot after a couple of years is the popular Geranium 'Rozanne'.  It's ok for a year or so then that root goes down and when you dig it up it's surprising to see such a huge taproot... so I might be careful about that one..
    East Anglia, England
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Ok, thanks for that Marlorena, one to definitely avoid. I have just read that Achillea is shallow rooted and comes in the right colours of course, but it’s odd there is so little info out there on this topic.

    I tried turning it on it’s head and searching for tap-rooted perennials to see what to avoid and I now know not to plant Baptisia or Eryngium either, but otherwise probably worrying too much as usual  :)
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
Sign In or Register to comment.