Just to add I have had a lot of plants which won't grow (lavender & tamarisk to name but two). I am going to choose new ones carefully as I can't afford to waste money. Honeysuckle seems to be a goer though which is good! Bulbs & poppies also very happy which is a blessing.
There are thousands of plants which will be fine - whether it's for sun or shade. It isn't just what's below the feet of plants either - it's climate. Lavender never does well here for example- grows too much in summer, because of plenty of moisture, then can't cope with winter as all that soft stuff gets hit with cold, and gets woody. Usually needs replacing every few years
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I have the same problem with Lavender but I have a Tamarisk which is doing very well.
Some other things you could try which do well in my experience - astrantias, Veronica, persicaria, heleniums, potentilla. Lobelia cardinalis also love the wetter bits.
Clematis are also good although my wife says I have enough clematis already
Yes - the large flowered clems like moisture @padmeister . The early ones - alpinas etc, prefer drier, poorer conditions. I have those in raised beds, and usually with plenty of other planting to help keep it drier. Lobelias are slug magnets here, so I don't grow those. Used to have one by a pond but I gave up on it because of that. Plenty of Iris will love clay - sibiricas in particular. They can adapt once established, even if it doesn't stay wetter in summer. My favourite is this one though - chrysographes. it only flowers briefly, but the colour is so superb, I don't mind that
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
@hiacedrifter This is a very complex subject what works in one garden with clay soil doesn't in another. Microclimate is well worth considering before you buy plants. I have an area in my garden that is next to a path in full sun, here I can grow Origanum Herrenhausen a plant from the Mediterraean. In your garden it may thrive in similar circumstances but slight variations in rainfall/cold/amount of sun affect things. So it is worth looking in detail at every aspect of your garden.
In a small /medium sized garden it is possible to create something beautiful. Plant options may be limited but that can be an advantage. Repeating plants through a space holds a garden together.
I don't grow clematis as they cannot get their roots through the clay. With roses I have grown R Glauca for many years where the soil remains fairly damp in summer. Roses in general like lots of water so I grow just one more rose that I really look after. Anything with silver leaves is also a waste of time.
Photinias and cotoneaster are generally fine but leaf spots on Photinia are a problem in a wet winter and cotoneaster takes on a blackened look. Heuchera are also a problem for me wet and cold in the winter and too dry in the summer an increasing problem.
For the front of border where the roots don't need to penetrate I grow Campanula Dixon's Gold and C Chloe they perfer some sun but not too dry in the summer. In shade Galanthus, Pulmonaria Diana Claire, Bowles Golden sedge, Helleborous Orientalis,Polystichum Seiferum, Geranium Phaeum,G Sirak and Epimediums [not the japanese ones] which suprise me by doing well. This area is all about lifting splitting and repeating.
Euonymous Green Rocket is good for structure and can be repeated. Viburnum's such as V bodnantense Charles Lamont also make a tall shrub and if old stems are cut to the ground takes uo little space at ground level. Amelanchier alnifolia Obelisk is another tall shrub. All Amelanchiers and decidous Viburnhams are tolerant of different soil conditions but everything has limitations.
I do grow a dozen different grasses, again where they are placed needs careful consideration, some will rot in a cold wet winter. There was a lovely garden on GW yesterday where grasses were used to great effect, they cope very well in dry summer conditions.
I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
Very true @GardenerSuze . I've got well-drained sand but within a short walk there are areas with clay, loam with high water table, and peat. You can sometimes see where it changes just by what grows well. Soilscapes is useful to see the local variations https://www.landis.org.uk/soilscapes/ .
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
@JennyJ Thankyou for that link it just goes to show how important it is to consider soil before offering any advice. Only a short walk from here the soil is silt as you get nearer to the river. Having said that most soils locally to me are clay. I
I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
What's the best/cheapest thing to buy to dig into the soil? Or spread on top? I have heard reference to "humus" - can you buy that? I can make a small amount of leaf mould at home but not in the quantities I need.
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It isn't just what's below the feet of plants either - it's climate.
Lavender never does well here for example- grows too much in summer, because of plenty of moisture, then can't cope with winter as all that soft stuff gets hit with cold, and gets woody. Usually needs replacing every few years
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Some other things you could try which do well in my experience - astrantias, Veronica, persicaria, heleniums, potentilla. Lobelia cardinalis also love the wetter bits.
Clematis are also good although my wife says I have enough clematis already
Lobelias are slug magnets here, so I don't grow those. Used to have one by a pond but I gave up on it because of that.
Plenty of Iris will love clay - sibiricas in particular. They can adapt once established, even if it doesn't stay wetter in summer.
My favourite is this one though - chrysographes. it only flowers briefly, but the colour is so superb, I don't mind that
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I have an area in my garden that is next to a path in full sun, here I can grow Origanum Herrenhausen a plant from the Mediterraean. In your garden it may thrive in similar circumstances but slight variations in rainfall/cold/amount of sun affect things.
So it is worth looking in detail at every aspect of your garden.
In a small /medium sized garden it is possible to create something beautiful. Plant options may be limited but that can be an advantage. Repeating plants through a space holds a garden together.
I don't grow clematis as they cannot get their roots through the clay.
With roses I have grown R Glauca for many years where the soil remains fairly damp in summer. Roses in general like lots of water so I grow just one more rose that I really look after. Anything with silver leaves is also a waste of time.
Photinias and cotoneaster are generally fine but leaf spots on Photinia are a problem in a wet winter and cotoneaster takes on a blackened look. Heuchera are also a problem for me wet and cold in the winter and too dry in the summer an increasing problem.
For the front of border where the roots don't need to penetrate I grow Campanula Dixon's Gold and C Chloe they perfer some sun but not too dry in the summer.
In shade Galanthus, Pulmonaria Diana Claire, Bowles Golden sedge, Helleborous Orientalis,Polystichum Seiferum, Geranium Phaeum,G Sirak and Epimediums [not the japanese ones] which suprise me by doing well. This area is all about lifting splitting and repeating.
Euonymous Green Rocket is good for structure and can be repeated. Viburnum's such as V bodnantense Charles Lamont also make a tall shrub and if old stems are cut to the ground takes uo little space at ground level. Amelanchier alnifolia Obelisk is another tall shrub. All Amelanchiers and decidous Viburnhams are tolerant of different soil conditions but everything has limitations.
I do grow a dozen different grasses, again where they are placed needs careful consideration, some will rot in a cold wet winter. There was a lovely garden on GW yesterday where grasses were used to great effect, they cope very well in dry summer conditions.