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Bay window flower bed advice please

kerrysturtkerrysturt Posts: 1
in Garden design
Hi. I am a complete garden novice but would like to cheer up my bay window flower bed. This is a south- west facing bed and very open to the elements. My other half wants colour and to “fill it up”. I have been to garden centres but I am overwhelmed by the choices and don’t know what to choose that will work.  Any advice gratefully received. Thank you. 
P.S the plant on the left has been removed and put in a large pot in the back garden. 


Posts

  • rachelQrtJHBjbrachelQrtJHBjb Posts: 819
    So it's by the house wall and gets a good amount of sun. I would select Mediterranean plants and those who like it hot, dry and sunny. The Daisy Roots nursery in Hertfordshire specialises in these plants. You could consider lavender, Stachys byzantina 'Big Ears', Gaura, Cistus (though they do get big), Eryngiums such a "Picos Amethyst' and 'Picos Blue', and herbs such as rosemary, sage and thyme. The blue salvia on the right is doing well and most my suggestions would compliment it. I would dig in a bag or two of compost just because the soil looks impoverished. You won't need to feed with fertiliser.
  • amancalledgeorgeamancalledgeorge Posts: 2,736
    I would pull up those slabs and enlarge the bed...it's too stingy to grow anything to full maturity. Mind you I still don't understand why house builders put moisture and plants by the foundations of any building...but that's beside the point. At least you have lots of shine shine which will help with whatever direction you want to take it. Nice suggestions above to work with the existing salvia. 
    To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow
  • edhelkaedhelka Posts: 2,351
    I would do two large lavenders in the corners. I am not sure how wide is the narrowest part, maybe thyme there if it is very narrow?
  • BorderlineBorderline Posts: 4,700
    Because it's quite narrow, I would go for low prostrate plants like Rosmarinus Officinalis Prostratus, Erigeron Karvinskianus and dots of Linaria Purpurea 'Canon J Went' or Linaria Vulgaris. All should be quite easy to maintain so long as the soil stays free draining. Any plants taking over, just dig them up.
  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    I'm with 'amancalledgeorge' on this one, the bed is far too narrow to ever look very good. I would take up the paving slabs so you've got a good 3ft wide flower bed then relay the slabs to reinstate the path if it's really needed. Get some bagged manure and dig it into the new bed, then choose your plants as suggested above. Google them all and select which ones you like the look of, considering the height and spread of each one. A rose bush would look good nearest the front door, preferably a white or cream one so the colour doesn't clash with the brickwork.

    Good luck, let us know how you get on.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • LoxleyLoxley Posts: 5,698
    If you're keeping the bed as-is, just plant one or two things and fill up the bed with it. It will look better than lots of little things. I would go with clumps of upright rosemary e.g. Tuscan Blue (which is prettier than standard rosemary) at either end, and Erigeron karvinskianus in the narrow bit and along the perimeter of the whole bed. The Salvia you already have looks great and would work instead of the Rosemary, but it's not evergreen.
    "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour". 
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    The problem with colour to brighten it up, as your OH wants, is that reds/oranges/yellows would clash with the warm red brick, as Lizzie27 indicates, which is probably why most suggestions have instinctively gone for the cooler blue/lavender/white end of the spectrum.
    I would also lift the slabs and bring them forward, even by one slab width would make a difference. Mediterranean plants would look really good - but dig in some compost and grit, not manure, to improve drainage if the soil is heavy and mulch with gravel, not organic material such as bark chippings.
    Med plants thrive on sun, less rich soils and good drainage, plus need less water so would be better so close to the house than plants that need huge amounts of water poured at their roots regularly. Soil at the bottom of a wall is naturally dry as it is in a rain shadow.
    A white rose would look lovely, but roses are hungry and thirsty plants, so I would probably put it in a large pot, ideally with the pot itself, but not the rose, shaded by other plants, which will help stop the roots overheating and preserve water.
    You could always dig a circular bed in the middle of the grass and plant something with a pop of colour, say a bright and cheery yellow, which is less clashy than red or orange and would also go well with the Med look/cool blues.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    @Nollie is quite right, I had momentarily forgotten you don't use manure when planting Mediterranean plants - my apologies. His advice re plants, gravel, colours etc are spot on! 
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
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