It is a shame you can't make space for Delphiniums; I cannot resist them in my tiny flower beds, they survive, they get hacked down after the first flowering and bounce back for a late summer blooming. I quite like the overcrowded look.
Have you got any spring flowering bulbs coming through now? If so, and you want to keep them, I'd recommend you mark where they are befor carrying on with the rest of the planting. And if you haven't, I'd maybe consider getting some, as it struck me that with your list of plants you won't get much flowering till late spring at the earliest. Bulbs can be slotted into the gaps between herbaceous perennials, and will start to die down as the herbaceous stuff gets going and hides their leaves.
I think I'm going to plant some bearded irises just so I can watch them grow in the sin (see Gardening Grandma's advice). For the rest, I've piled most of these into borders in a haphazard way and it's all produced a gorgeous jam-packed cottage garden. What I'm not so keen on is having to stake plants - artjak - does hacking them down mean you don't have to stake delphiniums?
If you don't yet know what will come up in your garden the best advice is to wait for a whole growing season to see what grows. Take photos and make notes of gaps to fill and plants to replace/lift/divide/remove and have some annuals on standby to plug gaps.
All plants have an optimum size or eventual size and, to do their best, need the space to get the light, water and nutrients they need to produce decent foliage and/or flowers. Once you know what's there and can improve the fertility of the soil with mulches of good garden compost, you can think about layering plants for a succession of blooms so that, for example, daffodils get replaved by aquilegias or hardy geraniums and they get replaced by late flowering plants such as rudbeckias and heleniums.
Don't try being too ambitious too soon as you may end up spending money on plants which don't get established and die or are weak.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
KirstyB2; sadly, you still have to support them, especially here in the breezy Fens. I use those spiral metal thingys which I stab into the ground right next to the plant the moment they start growing in the spring, they then more or less look after themselves. Just check that it is all growing within the spiral.
Kirsty, it would definitely brighten up having bearded iris if they did a bit of sinning. Recently, on a thread about the insulating value of plants, I told people to discuss insulating their houses with pants.
I'm impressed with those who can protect their delphiniums adequately from slugs.
Figrat, Artjak is a laydee!! and G. Grandma, I have never had problems with slugs on Delphs. In fact I almost never put slug pellets on the flower beds unless it is for Sweet Peas and Morning Glory, the latter being real slug magnet. I save the slug pellets for the veg; but this year am making an exception as there were SO MANY slugs when I gardened yesterday.
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It is a shame you can't make space for Delphiniums; I cannot resist them in my tiny flower beds, they survive, they get hacked down after the first flowering and bounce back for a late summer blooming. I quite like the overcrowded look.
Have you got any spring flowering bulbs coming through now? If so, and you want to keep them, I'd recommend you mark where they are befor carrying on with the rest of the planting. And if you haven't, I'd maybe consider getting some, as it struck me that with your list of plants you won't get much flowering till late spring at the earliest. Bulbs can be slotted into the gaps between herbaceous perennials, and will start to die down as the herbaceous stuff gets going and hides their leaves.
Just a thought...
I think I'm going to plant some bearded irises just so I can watch them grow in the sin (see Gardening Grandma's advice). For the rest, I've piled most of these into borders in a haphazard way and it's all produced a gorgeous jam-packed cottage garden. What I'm not so keen on is having to stake plants - artjak - does hacking them down mean you don't have to stake delphiniums?
If you don't yet know what will come up in your garden the best advice is to wait for a whole growing season to see what grows. Take photos and make notes of gaps to fill and plants to replace/lift/divide/remove and have some annuals on standby to plug gaps.
All plants have an optimum size or eventual size and, to do their best, need the space to get the light, water and nutrients they need to produce decent foliage and/or flowers. Once you know what's there and can improve the fertility of the soil with mulches of good garden compost, you can think about layering plants for a succession of blooms so that, for example, daffodils get replaved by aquilegias or hardy geraniums and they get replaced by late flowering plants such as rudbeckias and heleniums.
Don't try being too ambitious too soon as you may end up spending money on plants which don't get established and die or are weak.
KirstyB2; sadly, you still have to support them, especially here in the breezy Fens. I use those spiral metal thingys which I stab into the ground right next to the plant the moment they start growing in the spring, they then more or less look after themselves. Just check that it is all growing within the spiral.
Kirsty, it would definitely brighten up having bearded iris if they did a bit of sinning. Recently, on a thread about the insulating value of plants, I told people to discuss insulating their houses with pants.
I'm impressed with those who can protect their delphiniums adequately from slugs.
Figrat, Artjak is a laydee!! and G. Grandma, I have never had problems with slugs on Delphs. In fact I almost never put slug pellets on the flower beds unless it is for Sweet Peas and Morning Glory, the latter being real slug magnet. I save the slug pellets for the veg; but this year am making an exception as there were SO MANY slugs when I gardened yesterday.
Different breed of slugs???
Sorry Artjak! Maybe it was the jak bit that swayed me.