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Doing a garden makeover: Late flower colour for north facing window boxes
Fire
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Our community group are doing up the small front garden for a disabled neighbour. When asked, he said,yes, he would like window boxes planted up for the late summer and is able to water them, despite crutches. He has zero experience of any plant. The window sills are north facing - lots of light (no shady trees) but little direct sun. I am thinking of nasturtiums and I would like to choose some small, long flowering wild flowers that might reseed for next year, something that dies back inconspiciously. Birds foot trefoil? Other thoughts...
We got out all weeds (mostly couch grass and brambles) and we are going to put down weed membrane and then thick layer of bark. We couldn't get some of the deep bramble roots out, so might have to keep cutting those back. But ideal we want to set it up so that it is v, v low maintenance.
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I'm slightly confused because I'm only seeing a border in the pix. Is that the window at the far end?
Nasturtiums generally need a lot of light and sun, so that might not be great. They're not great when transplanted either- better sown direct.
Fuchsias and Busy Lizzies are good in shade for bright colours, and those blowsy [horrible] begonias [people must like them - they sell plenty! ] would also do the job.
You could always have bulbs for spring too, and even some of the small trailing ivies for a bit of winter colour. Heucheras would also be great in with those, or even some of the small, globe shaped evergreen Hebes, which would look like box balls, but it depends on whether you want all year round, or just summer colour.
If you're making the window boxes, you can do them so that those plastic troughs will fit inside, and then you could do both 'seasons' quite easily.
There are loads of things that could go in the border, depending on whether you wanted shrubs or if you just want to leave a bark covering so that it's easy to access the boxes.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Ox eye daisies also do well without direct sun and are good for pollinators, the first flush of flowers lasts a good while during May/June and if the stems are cut down when all the flowers have finished you should get a second flush September. They’re not to messy when they die back imo
Evenung Primrose isn’t very graceful when it goes over but the birds love the seeds so lots of winter enjoyment watching them but obviously a choice for the border not the window box
Allium sphaerocephalon would be happy if there’s plenty of light
East facing, top of a hill clay-loam, cultivated for centuries (7 years by me). Birmingham