I only planted this last year and was aiming for a prairie style border. In hindsight, I have over planted it and I fear it’s looking too busy and not enough cohesion.
There are grasses: several Stipa tenuissima and arundincea, along with one gigantea. There is a miscanthus too.
Nectarine tree in the middle. Some shrubs around the back/side, along with two climbers to eventually cover the fences.
Then there are a range of herbaceous perennials. A few hardy geraniums, phlox, fleabane, salvia cardonna, lambs ear, achillea, Mollis, lychnis, rudbeckia, echinacea, lavender.
I have space elsewhere to move plants and I’m wondering what I could do to improve this. I was thinking of narrowing down the species. Even typing out those perennials made me think there was too much. Less species but more of them perhaps.
Or is it something else, is the structure wrong?
Welcome any thoughts. I’m fairly new to this style of gardening but enjoying it.
by PorridgeO
13 Comments
My honest opinion? It’s absolutely fine and looks great.
I think the problem at the moment is the height, everything is the same height right now. I’d reassess in a year or two but I’d maybe add some more grasses, I like switch grass and quaking grass.
Needs some darker leaf green in the top left, just to balance the different greens and create some more contrast.
Wooden boarder. And a bench
They do wheelbarrow planters that are small.. Get some bricks do a boarder edging..
I really like it as it is..
theres nothing wrong with that. apart from the green thing and the white thing ruining my view haha.
I think everything has established really well and quite clearly likes the light level the plants get, maybe a bird bath and a tidy up of the grass edge?
I love the layering and the composition.
It looks smashing.
I would say the magenta phlox(is it phlox) on the right is taking my attention.
I would either balance it with some phlox/ echinacea purpurea on the left, OR remove it entirely and have some yellow instead.
ah right i understand now. well it looks great
I think it looks great, I would just add a border of some sort.
I actually like it as is – it’s quite informal and it’s very full, which is the style I see a lot out and about.
A beehive?