I need help chosing some plants

[steppemum]

So, having a sort out and clearing some space, and I need a few plants. Any suggestions welcome.
My soil is on the alkaline side, loads of good compost available, towards top of a hill, so quite free draining.

so

1. south facing bed, wall behind (so gets hot and dry) There are several big shrubs against the wall (honeysuckle, forsythia and a couple of others.) The ground in front is bare and needs something low, up to waist height, preferably evergreen, and the more interest in terms of flowers/berries the better. I was thinking of potentilla? But it could do with 2 or 3 things along the bed. I have loads of spring flowering stuff, so a later summer flowerer would be good.

1. north facing bed, so always in the shade. I have 3 huge green boring bushes and want to dig one out and replace it with something more interesting, again, flowers, colour stems, leaves etc. (maybe replace 2 if I can)

1. front garden, west facing, lots of afternoon sun, tends to catch wind. It is gravelled with shrubs planted in through the gravel. It is all old and tired, needs replacing, so I need one large shrub for height and interest. Not a tree, and not too dense. Would love flowers, leaves, autumn leaves etc.
2. some small plants to go in through the gravel to replace the old tired ones.

So, let your imaginations run wild, and find me some lovely plants.

I don't want any herabceoue perennials in any of these slots, I need something that has structure all year round, even if bare sticks.

Thank you!

please help me.

I finished clearing the south facing bed today, the big shrubs are nice but the ground in front is just scraggy and bare.

I know the shrubs will grow a lot over the summer, but what do I do with the ground in front?

I have tried bedding plants etc, and they need too much care, as it is hot and dry.

If I could find some nice low bushes of some sort then it would fill the gap.
I suppose I could put lavender or rosemary along the front of the bed. Trouble is, it is a narrow bed.

I thought it would all look nice after pruning and clearing and instead it looks very scraggy

Lavatera is nice, buddleia too, Lilac and orange blossom, lavender for your front garden and Lespedeza. There a nice book called What PLant Where by Roy Lancaster which helps .. Rosemary is very tender, sorry I didn't see that you have lavender.

Could you do a nice little lavender hedge, kept nice and compact in the south border? Or a little herb garden with rosemary etc?

My garden is looking a bit scraggy in places too it's normal in winter surely? The birds love the seeds that I leave on the perennials. I did trim the potentilla for the first time , I'll see if it improves it in the summer.

Oh yes I love lavatera (that is tree mallow isn';t it?)
Do you think that would grow in the north border, because it flowers all summer, it would be lovely.

I have one huge buddleia, so that's enough I think!

interesting you say rosemary is tender, I have ahuge rosemary bush I planted when we moved in, and it seems tough as old boots.

ppeatfruit I know what you mean, but I know there isn't anything there to come up, except grape hyancinths, and wild garlic, which seems to self seed all over my garden! The grape hyancinths are nice for a week or so, but then just a mass of sad green!

I'm just going to google Lespedaz, I don't know that one.

oh the lespedeza is lovely!
and autumn flowering which would be nice.

thinking more lavender would be nice, and maybe a low edge of lavender or potentillas would make it all look better.

I was given some plant money for my birthday last week, so I am keen to spend it and actually get some decent plants for once!

For your hot dry south bed:
Evergreen grasses ; eg anemanthele lessoniana (Pheasant eye grass); carex species,
pampas grass
Agapanthus - keeps its leaves all year

For your North bed:
Hebes
Hardy fuchsia
camellia (if the soil is right)
Acers (if protected from cold wind)
I think the lavatera would be ok here, I have one in a north bed (Barnsley Silver) and it is quite happy.
Coronilla.

For your windy west facing gravel garden:
A small eucalyptus of a variety that can be kept under control eg Azara
or cotinus coggyria (this is decidous so will be bare in winter)

Other plants for gravel;
eryngium, echinops, oenethera, scabious, perovskia, veronicas, thyme, thrift.

Oh loads of ideas to look up, thank you.
I actually have 2 hardy fuchsias which I have to move, as they get in the way of the car doors when it is parked, but they are lovely and I want to keep them. It has only just occurred to me that they are in a North facing bed, so I could move them to the back of the house and put them in the North bed there.

That eucalyptus is lovely!

There is a tired old thrift in the front, it was lovely, but has had its time, I might replace it with another one, as it did well there

Yes it is known as tree mallow too, it does like to be a bit sheltered, my new one is less prolific than I would 've liked, I dead headed it but it didn't flower for the whole summer. The other one is tree like and old, south facing, it's not too happy, maybe because it's partly under a tree .

I've just remembered a lovely, easy slow growing (it won't take over like other bamboos) called Nandina domestica, it has year round interest. Is happy anywhere too.

I've just discoveres that cotinus coggyria is the smoke tree! I love that plant. I may put that in the front. especially the one with the red leaves.

I LOVE that plant too! I was looking for one here (in mid west Fr.) but I found a maroon leaved hamamelis which needs watering quite a lot, it is looking ok
Ref.rosemary there is a hardy type , we must have just chosen ( or taken cuttings from ) the wrong type!