I've just dug everything up in my front bed and I want to start again - what can I put in that is low maintenance and pretty?

[IHeartKingThistle]

I have a big curved bed to the side of the front door. It gets full sun but only in the afternoons.

3 years ago I filled it with perennials which looked lovely for the first 2 years, but I obviously was doing something wrong because most of them have now bitten the dust and I hate the way they look during the winter.

So I've dug it all up. Now have a large expanse of bare earth.

I'm thinking shrubs? A few medium plants rather than loads of fiddly little ones? The bed is under the living room window so nothing higher than about a metre though.

Any suggestions please?

[PeopleOnTheEdgeOfTheNight]

Do you like peonies? My local poundland has bare-root peonies, bulbs and a few shrubs at the moment.

The rhs.org.uk lets you browse plants by soil type etc so may be good.

[IHeartKingThistle]

Or alpines and rocks?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Or alpines and rocks?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Or alpines and rocks?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Or alpines and rocks?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Or alpines and rocks?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Or alpines and rocks?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Argh sorry!

[IHeartKingThistle]

I like peonies but looking for something that looks nice for most of the year.

That rhs site says to plant gorse bushes!

[CointreauVersial]

I would suggest a few shrubs (but read the label carefully, as the buggers have a habit of growing and you don't want a massive thicket darkening your windows). Choose compact ones which flower at different times of the year, maybe a couple of evergreens too.

Then supplement/fill in the gaps with (a) some pretty spring bulbs, and (b) a few colourful annuals which can be put in once the bulbs are going over and whipped out again in the autumn.

[CointreauVersial]

Trying to think of some compact/slow growing shrubs..... a Hebe, perhaps? An Azalea, if you have the right soil. A Hydrangea? Something nice and sculptural, like a Dracaena or a grass?

[aircooled]

Hebes? Evergreen, will enjoy the afternoon sun and have attractive flowers late summer. There are lots of different varieties but most won't grow past your windowsill.

[IHeartKingThistle]

Ooh some lovely ideas!

I do love a hydrangea but they can grow monstrous can't they?

[PeopleOnTheEdgeOfTheNight]

Fuschia?
Tulips?
Aquilegia?

[WhatsGoingOnEh]

I love camellias and would plant them anywhere I could. The cream ones are especially gorgeous. And they're low-maintenance. My perfect garden would just be camellias. :)

[IHeartKingThistle]

What'sgoingon it's funny - my friend inherited a garden full of camellias and is taking them all out as she cat stand them! I like them - are there any that stay small?

[WhatsGoingOnEh]

ARGHHHHH! Save the camellias!! Please take them, or tell her that I'd LOVE them! (I'm serious!)

They can stay small if you grow them in pots. I googled and found this:

^Camellias are excellent in containers too. For your smaller spaces, Fairy Blush is a great choice, growing only to 4 to 5 feet tall and wide. It’s a perfect container choice for patios and courtyards where you can enjoy its delicate fragrance during the winter months. Marge Miller™ is an ideal choice not only for containers, but is a gorgeous addition to retaining walls or even hanging baskets. While its soft pink flowers make it beautiful, it’s unique prostrate habit make it an eye-catching addition. When trained on a stake or wall, it will cascade down for a lovely, weeping shape.

My camellias have never got beyond about 6' tall.

[MairzyDoats]

Ceanothus are lovely and grow pretty quickly, also what about some grasses?

[IHeartKingThistle]

Those look gorgeous mairzy - a bit like lilac which I adore but would be much too big! Do you think I'd need the dwarf variety? The regular says 1.5-2m which would be above the window ledge, but tbh I'd be surprised if anything grew to full capacity in that location.

[cerealqueen]

How about some lavender? Year round, nice flowers?

[MyNightWithMaud]

Callicarpa? I've had mine several years and it's still only about a metre tall.

[IHeartKingThistle]

I normally love lavender but there is shed loads of it in the back garden and apart from 3 weeks of the year it looks like a heap of dead sticks. I'm trying to avoid anything that looks like heaps of dead sticks this time!

[IHeartKingThistle]

Will look up callicarpa.

[WhatsGoingOnEh]

Your lavender shouldn't ever look like dead sticks! Is it planted in a shady spot? It hates that, it's a sun worshipper. Does it get too much rain? Again, it hates too much water. There are good tips here for lavender: everything-lavender.com/problems-with-lavender-plant.html

I'd cut it RIGHT back. Be brutal. Then replant, adding sand to the soil underneath the roots, or move it to a sunnier, drier patch.

[WhatsGoingOnEh]

DS2 and I planted a load of lavender in the front garden of our old house. It was a dry, barren patch, usually baked with sun. We planted three different types of lavender and they THRIVED. It was a glorious, waving field of honey-scented lavender, humming with happy bees. DS2 was only 4, it was the first gardening he'd ever done and we were so proud of it.

Drove past the house last week. New owners have torn it all out. Great.