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Plants for a shady and poorly draining border area

tomrogers123tomrogers123 Posts: 5
in Problem solving
Hi everyone - I have a shady and poorly draining border area and would like some recommendations for some plants to fill the border. I've tried a few things in the past with mixed success.

It's the area you can see underneath the bay tree, which has just been cut back quite significantly.

Thanks,

Tom

Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Hi @tomrogers123 - when you say poorly draining, do you mean it never drains away and is always moist, or do you mean it just takes a long time to get drier?
    What have you already tried that didn't work, and is the shade only caused by the bay tree?

    Consistently moist soil still needs to be healthy though, so it would be useful to know exactly what the situation is  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • tomrogers123tomrogers123 Posts: 5
    Hi @Fairygirl - It just takes longer to dry out and it’s very heavy / clay soil.
  • tomrogers123tomrogers123 Posts: 5
    And yes, shade from the bay tree. The lawn around the bay tree doesn’t grow very well either.
  • Winston_The_Gravity_ManWinston_The_Gravity_Man Posts: 263
    Watch out for that bay tree....they get very tall, very quickly.  We've one that went from a cutting in a pot to over fifteen feet high seemingly overnight (well, not really that fast, but it only took about ten years).  Handy for cookery though, and we made a friend of a Portuguese lady who we would supply branches to for her to dry  😁
    When there's always biscuits in the tin, where's the fun in biscuits ?
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    You didn't mention what you've already tried growing, but all plants [apart from pond varieties ] need drainage - even bog plants. The fact that the grass isn't great there either tends to suggest that the area isn't good enough to support plants well.

    Clay is an excellent growing medium, but not without some amending - it will just be a solid mass otherwise, that roots can't penetrate well. Easier in a large open space, but not a small one.
    Adding rotted manure, compost, leaf mould will help to improve the structure, but it's not instant. I grow lots of plants that are suitable for wet clay and shade, but I don't plant until the soil is in good shape.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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