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Dry Bank

OldHouseNewHouseOldHouseNewHouse Posts: 38
in Problem solving
Hi All

I am new to this forum so be easy please.

I have a small bank up one side of my driveway which part of it is too steep to cut grass with lawnmower.

The bank used to be overgrown with hedges/trees which i took away last year.

I planted some Laurel Hedging up the side of it and noticed yellow leaves falling off which i think means 'needs water' so i will water daily for the time being.

I also planted some lavender plants last year as i thought this dry/clay bank would suit them but i had to take them out few weeks ago as they had no life in them.

As the bank is very dry/clay are there any plants that i could put that would fill out to a spread of around 2/3 meters and i could just trim every year?

Thanks  
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Posts

  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    A photograph or 2 would really help us visualise the problem area.
    I'm a bit puzzled as to why you removed the trees and 'hedges' whatever they were, and now want to replant with something like laurel. If the bank is too steep to mow it is going to be too steep to stand on safely to prune a hedge that will need doing several times a year.
    To enable plants to establish well and flourish you will need to improve the soil with organic material, as it will be have been impoverished, by the previous occupants. Plants will also need generous watering until their root systems have developed and this will be tricky on a sloping clay bank as the water will just run off. Even lavenders will need watering until established and though they can then cope with dry weather they prefer a looser, grittier soil than clay.
    My entire garden is on the side of a hill and the degree of slope ranges from negligible to almost vertical. In the steeper parts have found Cotoneaster horizontalis very useful. You can plant it near the bottom and the branches grow uphill and spread wide. It is green for most of the year, has flowers bees love and berries the birds love and in winter provides an intricate tracery of branches. You just prune out any branch that is going the wrong way and it needs no other attention.
    You could use it as a support for a clematis for additional colour. I have ground cover rose 'Max Graf' next to mine and it is looking lovely right now after many years and zero pruning. It does look a bit of a tangle in winter though, not a problem for me as I don't need to see it every day. but less than ideal for your situation perhaps.
  • Busy-LizzieBusy-Lizzie Posts: 24,043
    My laurel drops yellow leaves, even when the ground was wet when we had a lot of rain. I think it's just renewing its leaves. Some evergreens do that as they don't lose them in winter.

    A useful plant for unmowable banks is Hypericum calycinum, low growing, yellow flowers, doesn't need much maintenance, just clip at the end of winter to allow new growth. It spreads over the ground. Will grow in quite shady places. I had it on a bank in a past house instead of grass. Will need watering when first planted.
    Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
  • Wrigs21Wrigs21 Posts: 194
    My dry bank has proven tricky. Gone for some Vinca, although will spread, and some drought tolerant hardy geraniums which seem to have taken well 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I would echo @Buttercupdays's suggestion of cotoneaster. Easy, holds soil together, so it's good for steep areas, and good for wildlife. 
    All evergreens drop foliage at regular intervals, and replace them with fresh new growth, so it's generally nothing to worry about. When you water though, water by the bucket load for new laurel, and do it every couple of days, unless it rains continuously for hours and hours. Make sure the water is penetrating the soil too, and not running off. Doing it slowly, and a bit at a time is the way to go  :)
    I'd agree again though - it's not ideal for pruning and maintenance in a site like that. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • OldHouseNewHouseOldHouseNewHouse Posts: 38
    thanks for all the comments

    the bank is not that steep that i cant walk across to cut the Laurel hedge.

    just the soil is very dry and was wondering what plants would grow, yes water runs off the bank.

    the laurel hedge is planted on the top flat of the bank so water soaks into the base of the hedge.

    i might just put sleepers up the edge and membrane down with decorative stone, what ya think?
  • TopbirdTopbird Posts: 8,355
    Wouldn't the stones just get washed to the bottom of the slope when it rains? Especially if they're on top of membrane which is quite a slippery surface.
    Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Unless you mean putting sleepers in to level up the bank, and then infilling with soil, the gravel would slide, as @Topbird says. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • TopbirdTopbird Posts: 8,355
    It's a bit hard to give any more constructive suggestions without knowing the dimensions of the site and the degree of slope we're talking about.

    Somebody has already suggested vinca and that and dead-nettle survive very well in my very, very dry and poor clay soil under an ash tree. They also both root wherever they touch the soil so are good for stabilising soil on slopes. They're a bit boring though - especially if it's a large area.

    If grass is your preferred option (you mention mowing) - is this an area you could plant up with wildflower plugs and a bit of grass and then strim it as required? (I think once a year once the flower seeds have dropped). IME spring bulbs, umbellifers, poppies and some of the hardy geraniums and ox-eye daisies would probably do ok.
    Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
  • OldHouseNewHouseOldHouseNewHouse Posts: 38

  • OldHouseNewHouseOldHouseNewHouse Posts: 38
    here is a pic of the bank in question.

    you can see the laurel hedging on the right hand side and how i can get access to cut it.

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