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Help and advise needed

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  • AthelasAthelas Posts: 946
    About the Hakonechloa, it’s a lovely grass, but it’s not evergreen. For me it dies down completely in winter and at this point a few tiny shoots are only coming out now.

    Carex is evergreen and doesn’t need shaping, lots of different coloured forms available.
    Cambridgeshire, UK
  • didywdidyw Posts: 3,573
    I agree with others - neither cordyline or phormium would work in your border.  They do grow much larger than the one in your picture which looks as if it has had its lower leaves taken off as it has grown taller.  That one may well branch as well.  A lot of grasses die down in winter.  But how about a black-stemmed bamboo? Phyllostachys Nigra? They are very slow growing and quite expensive, depending on the size you buy, but classy!  They do like a fairly moist soil though.  You could sink them in pots into the bed and make sure you water that area more.
    Gardening in East Suffolk on dry sandy soil.
  • Zahid_63cZahid_63c Posts: 121
    I appreciate all the suggestions
    That is true if the cordilyn grows tall then I will have too much height
    I do plan to allow the buxus to grow somewhat taller to give more height
    I wanted a tree that was somewhat taller but misjudged size and cannot return now!
    The hebes sound like a good idea to add some colour 
    I have space(2.2m)between the buxus and the tree so I could more than 1 thing in between
    Can anyone suggest how to go about doing it to achieve a good look and add some colour 
  • Zahid_63cZahid_63c Posts: 121
    A ball shape hebe/eunonymus right in between the buxus and tree
    and then grasses/hosta either side
    Maybe something under tree?
    Not wanting cottage look but do want something interesting
    I'm CONFUSED!
    I had my mind set on cordilyn but members have given me something to think about 
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Most varieties of Cordyline and Phormium have a spread of well over 0.6m when mature, even if the young plants in the garden centres would fit, so you'd need to be careful to check the mature spread and choose the smallest varieties. See for example https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/popular/phormium/by-size , https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/popular/cordyline
    I haven't noticed Euonymus being sold already clipped into balls but that doesn't mean they don't exist. Expect to pay more if you find them though, as they will be older plants and have taken more time and work to grow.
    An additional thought - you might want to have a look in your box pyramids - sometimes those shapes are created more quickly by fastening several branches to a cane inside the plants with those little green plastic ties, and if that's the case you'll need to make sure that they don't cut into the branches over time.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Smaller types of hosta could work if it gets some shade and you can keep it moist enough (raised beds tend to be free-draining).
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    edited April 2021
    If it gets plenty of sun, have a look at agapanthus. The hardy ones do die back in winter (so do hostas), but in summer they have strap-shaped leaves, and rather architectural flowers followed by seed pods.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    Lavender and nepeta aren't contemporary.you could sink a phormium in a hidden pot keep it small,yes grasses would be great
  • K67K67 Posts: 2,506
    edited April 2021
    You could add Allium bulbs and a upright purple salvia or a veronica would look better than nepeta
    Also after the frosts some pelagoniums in white or another colour would fill in the gaps during the summer.
    Similar to this but they have used cyclamen.
  • Zahid_63cZahid_63c Posts: 121
    Lavender and nepeta aren't contemporary.you could sink a phormium in a hidden pot keep it small,yes grasses would be great
    So if I put cordilyn or phormium into the ground with the pot it wouldn't grow as much and only stay at the current size? 
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