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Gardening

Find tips and tricks to make your garden or allotment flourish on our Gardening forum.

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Original poster

What is your favourite plant in your garden ?

80 replies

NomDePlume · 27/08/2006 10:31

Yes, it's another NDP gardening thread... I moved house a few months ago and inherited a completely blank canvas, literally nothing but grass. We've had a landscaper in to do the groundworks - shaping the lawn and creating beds, also adding a nice big barked play space at the end of the garden where the big trampoline will go when it arrives. I now have the bare bones of a garden, but not one single plant aside from grass (is grass a plant ?! I guess it must be).

I'm keen but clueless when it comes to gardening and the thought of designing a planting scheme from scratch is pretty overwhelming, so I'm after a bit of inspiration.

So, what is your favourite plant ?

OP posts:

peanutbutter · 27/08/2006 18:25

NDP, plum trees are worth considering too as you say you like the idea of fruit trees. I bought a bin-ender Czar a couple of years ago and in the face of utter neglect on my part it has flourished and this year produced 11 perfect juicy plums.

Do you think you're nearer to visualising what you want?

hermykne · 27/08/2006 18:56

oh for scent the nicotina plant. not like nicotine

BROWNY · 27/08/2006 19:00

My absolute favourite has got to be my dwarf Liliac tree, it smells devine and has beautiful small pinky/lilac flowers. I also love my winter cherry tree, it was the first tree I planted in my garden when I moved here which makes it extra special. I have climbing clematis and wisteria and also jasmine plants that smell lovely by my front door. Have fun!

VeniVidiVickiQV · 27/08/2006 21:19

Malory

Joolstoo · 27/08/2006 21:30

it would really have helped me if you had all linked a photo to your fave plant - I have lots of new plants at my new house - I know roses and hydrangeas and poppies and carnations and rhodis and lavender but what about all the others!!!????

southeastastra · 27/08/2006 21:35

only read the op but i love all plants except for weeds. i have a nice red spikey thing that grows well also brought three 'apartment firs' that grew so well outside that i was confused why anyone could think they would grow well inside

Ulysees · 27/08/2006 21:38

dandelions, I'm good at those and the guinea pigs like them

Joking aside, I love my lavender bush. My dream is to go to some lavender fields, think they'd have trouble getting me out of there? The smell is heaven to me. I know it isn't a plant and just grows itself with a bit of snipping but I love it.

southeastastra · 27/08/2006 21:43

lavender is lovely i {heart] plants

merlotmama · 27/08/2006 22:08

I love my Sorbus vilmorinii. It is a rowan with a beautiful shape and very dainty leaves. The berries are not the usual orange but pink and gradually turn to white. In Scotland rowans are supposed to ward off evil spirits, so functional as well as beautiful. Multi-stemmed birches are lovely also.
Dierama would be suitable for a contempoary garden. It is known as Angel's Fishing Rods...mine are maybe four feet high with drooping deep pink flowers. Dierama pulcherium, or something like that! I have seen them planted amongst stones to look like a river bed...looked great.
My favouite flowers are fragrant ones, not all of which would sit comfortably with a modern house. Agree lavender would, though.

Ulysees · 27/08/2006 22:10

merlotmama, lavender revokes bad spirits too Are you into this sort of thing?

EmmyLou · 28/08/2006 14:16

Echinacea Purpurea - almost luminoutwo-toned orange coned centres, set off by purple petals. The bees love them too.

EmmyLou · 28/08/2006 14:17

(that's: "luminous two-toned")

prettybird · 28/08/2006 14:25

My rapberry canes are thornless and give a good crop. I've just dug up and thrown out a load as we are re-modelling the garden.

I transplanted 62, which will be mre future crop which I iwll manage better (no raspberries next year, as I've had to cut off this year's growth)

There's another large patch that I'll be digging up sortly and unless I can think of smehwere else to out them, they'll be disarded too. You could CAT me and I could try sending a couple of canes in a plastic bag with some moist earth. If they survive, they survice, if they don't ...

No charge!

bran · 28/08/2006 14:34

NdP if you don't want your bamboo to spread then sink a plasic container into the ground so the top of it is just below the soil (a plastic bin with the bottom cut out would be perfect) and plant the bamboo in that.

I love my grasses and my hostas, I have some really attractive blue-leaf hostas that I got from a specialist grower . I also bought my grasses from a specialist grower, but I can remember the name atm, I love my zebra grass and there is a new variety of blue grass that I keep meaning to order but haven't gotten around to yet.

Original poster

NomDePlume · 28/08/2006 17:36

This thread makes a really interesting read. I think I'm going to sit and think this all through properly, rather than doing it ad-hoc, which was my original rough-plan.

I deffo want bamboo, I think I'll use it to screen the trampoline, and maybe the shed.

OP posts:

bran · 28/08/2006 17:45

I remembered where I got my grasses from if you're interested, from Knoll Gardens . I don't know whether you have a good garden centre nearby or not, but I was also very happy with ordering from Crocus and the palm centre .

One thing about bamboo if you're planting them in pots and not the ground is that they like a lot of water, so you would probably have to water them every day from early spring until autumn.

Californifrau · 28/08/2006 17:46

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Glassofwine · 28/08/2006 18:14

Favourite is black bamboo, second is the bananna's - we had grandchildren this year and banannas!!!

By the way are you sinking your trampoline? I always thought it was a great idea.

Megglevache · 28/08/2006 18:25

Message withdrawn

Megglevache · 28/08/2006 18:27

Message withdrawn

MarsLady · 28/08/2006 18:28

My gorgeous fat fuschias that have survived DT2's attempt to eat them.

Original poster

NomDePlume · 28/08/2006 18:30

GOW - no we're not sinking the trampoline. It's a nice idea but it takes quite a lot of excavation and you need to retain the side walls to stop them eroding in on themselves. Expensive undertaking.

OP posts:

hub2dee · 28/08/2006 18:40

As well as using bamboo as screen, depending on your layout, you could incorporate it as the rear / tall interest in a bed (ie. instead of a 1 foot deep 'wall' to hide the shed / trampoline, create a 3 - 6 foot wide bed infront of it IYSWIM... might have more interest).

Having some kind of plan will ultimately give you a better finished feel IMHO.

Oh, you might want to think about some nice lighting so you can extend interest into the evening !

MrsApronstrings · 28/08/2006 18:42

we have a lovely climbing plant all over our garage with red trumpet like flowers - I love it because humming birds come to the flowers throught summer (we're in america)

magicfarawaytree · 28/08/2006 18:42

does a magnolia tree count or does it need to be a plant in which case my fushia bush

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