#mixed borders

Mixed borders-advice for maintaining or planning your border

Mixed borders have gained popularity in the coming years, moving away from the more traditional herbaceous borders which were grown tightly together in large rectangular beds based on their colour and height with tiny flowers at the front, medium in the centre and taller 6 ft plants at the back.

Mixed borders are easier to keep and are usually mixed together with annuals, perennials, biennials, shrubs and low growing trees of similar heights but the density of the plants are chosen more carefully, more airy plants like delicate ornamental grasses and flowers on long stalks can look striking mixed with more dense plants in the flower bed and also with deciduous trees, flowering shrubs, rosebushes,lilies and hedges.

Airy plants include: Cimicifuga (feathery spikes of white flowers), Delphinium (long flower spikes of various colours), Eremurus( foxtail lily ), Echinops (globe thistle), Kniphofia (colourful flower spikes), Lobelia, Allium, Armeria, Aquilegia. Camassia, Fritillaria, bottle bush types such as pennisetum& pennisetum(fountain grass).

Dense shrubs include : Button bush, Butterfly bush, Rose of sharon, Azalea, lilac, Quince, Dentzia, Forsythia, Weigela, Cinquefoil, Shrub rose, Potentilla, Rhododendron, Viburnum, Lavender, Sage, Mallow, Phlox, Geraniums, Campanula, Hemerocallis(day lily) and tall upright pelargoniums such  as P. Vitifolium & P. Denticulatum. They can also be mixed with simplistic and architectural shaped foliage to make your border more interesting, brightly coloured or Zoned leaves can also look effective.

When planning or improving your border think about the colours, height, density, growth size and season of flowering thought the year. The style of the border is also important so that that it blends well with the rest of the garden, such as a wild natural border, a border with similar colours such as gold-yellows, purple- blue, dark-pale pinks. A natural woodland garden with ferns, hollyhocks and bluebells, rock border with succulent type species or a border mixed with roses. They can also be based on a certain theme as as modern, contemporary, traditional, romantic, sculptural,or based on a theme such as a rustic, Japanese, Zen, European, Mediterranean or  Asian gardens. The edging of the border can vary, the traditional brick & stone edging is the most popular because it last longer than other edging types and is usually cemented to keep them in place, although some types do tend to be more expensive and can also be part of a patio design, They can also be positioned in different ways, they can be laid diagonally, as stone edging such a flagstone and cobble stone, a natural stone wall, or you may prefer a border with hedges, wooden edging, logs or sleepers. Wooden edging can look effective in the garden but doesn't usually last so long as it tends to rot, but this can depend on what style you wish to achieve. Or for a more simple approach you can use cinder blocks as edging  which can be cemented and painted or small metal border fence edging ,wattle fencing if you like an more rustic look. Mixing in an organic matter such as from a compost bin into the soil of the border can help improve its quality , this can be done once a year in Spring or Autumn which can also help with drainage in the soil. You may also think about lifting plants out gently, removing any dead leaves & stems and dividing plants to stop them growing too close together every four to five years.

Ideal plants for border perennials

Perennials are typically Spring and Summer flowering plants which die back in Autumn and Winter & then re growth occurs again in Spring, although this is not always the case. Some types still thrive throughout the Winter and can live for many years but this can also depend on temperature and location. Perennial types include evergreen, deciduous, monocarpic, woody or herbaceous.

Evergreens are great for adding colour to the garden during the winter months such as the blue flowered Brunnera, Helleborus in various colours, Nepeta with blue grey aromatic foliage and the Stachys pink flowers on long stems. Deciduous-When you read the word deciduous you immediately think of trees dropping their leaves in Autumn but in fact there are a few plants & shrubs which also shed their petals & fruit. Deciduous perennials include the bright yellow flowered Goldrod, the highly fragrant honeysuckle, white flowered viburnum, Grapes, wisteria & poison ivy.

Monocarpic are perennials which are short lived, they grow only to flower, produce seed and then die, these include the  Acanthacease group of flowering plants, Apocynaceae, Asteraceae, Agavaceae, Araceae and Fabaceae.

Woody perennials have woody stems and roots that continue to grow after each season, these can be trees, shrubs or wood climbing plants know as lianas. Woody perennials include rosemary, mulberry, blackberry, honeysuckle, and apple.

Herbaceous perennials have fresh green stems which are not woody and is usually a herb that is used in food or for medicinal properties, these include grasses, ferns, vines, trees, shrubs and some bamboo types. Such as Peonies, Salvia, Poppies, Aquilegia(columbine), bananas, cone flower (echinacea), daffodils are examples of Herbaceous perennials. Other perennials ideal for borders include: Acanthus Achillea-yarrow, Agapanthus-African lily, Anemone, Catananche-cupids dart, Cimicifuga-long flowering spikes,Eremurus-foxtail lily, Centaurea-cornflower, Chrysanthemum-daisy, Delphinium, Echinops-globe thistle, Evigeron, Lupin,Linum,Physostegia,

This morning the dew is clinging to the spiderwebs between the cedars and the air is perfumed with the scent of autumn. From where I'm sitting I can count six frogs. There is nothing quite like the pleasure I derive from my garden. 

The work on the long walk continues! Ahh, will it ever end!?? 

Someone said to me that this is looking like some weird golf putting area sans flags, but their comment comes from a lack of gardening imagination and a severe underestimation of how much work this is. 

Allow me to explain what's going on here.

Last year we moved a lot of dirt to create this area. We graded the hill and completely reshaped this space. The only constant was the pond and the fountain. The imported dirt grew weeds, lots of them which swallowed all the wildflower seeds I put down resulting in a mess of nasty plants.

This year, I hatched a new plan. I didn't have the budget to thickly plant perennials to outcompete the weeds so I went with a middle ground approach. I created some flower beds in organic shapes and planted them with fast-growing annual seeds like zinnias, cosmos, sunflowers, and asters. I didn't mix the seed so each bed will grow a unique type of flower. I bought mulch, lots of it, which I then packed in between the flower beds to stop weeds from taking over. My husband and I have now moved 12,000 lbs of mulch and there is more to go.

Without the clearly marked areas, I wouldn't know where to weed, or where the flowers were planted. The mulch also creates walking paths that weave through the flower field. Each bed is labeled so I can keep track of which flowers I liked best and which performed better in part shade/ sun, etc.

I did buy some perennials this year, which you can see in the photos. I mostly started with larger shrubs and trees because they take up a large amount of space. I put in some Itoh peonies, ninebarks, dogwoods, sorbaria, spirea, etc. Each year, as my budget permits, I will add more and more perennials in the currently drawn beds, thereby eliminating some of the annuals.

For this year, however, I'm truly looking forward to the explosion of color. Most of the plants I planted will grow 30" or more and bloom all the way through the first frost. This space will be a huge cut flower farm and a boon to pollinators of all types.

For those of you who don't remember what this area originally looked like before the landscaping...here's a before and after pic. If you want to see more of this project in progress I chose the tag #fountainproject.

I chose the curving shapes partially because of Gertrude Jekyll. Gertrude used to weave colors and beds into one another to create more of an organic cottage garden feel. Straight lines would have just been weird in this space.

This blog is a diary of the progress I make on the house and garden. Having lots of photos helps me assess what works and what doesn't. The gardening entries also help me understand how weather affects what I grow each season. I realize there's a lot of people following the blog now and that it's grown from a personal space into a sort of community space... but the focus for me is the same. This is a place for me to jot down ideas and keep track of changes around the house.

If it provides pleasure and inspiration to readers, then all the better.

Mixed Borders at Stonecrop Garden Part I