Ideas for new flower bed

[roastedsaltedpeanut]

Hi, I am at a loss of what to do as I have never had a flower bed so big.

DH has constructed a new flower bed for me as anniversary gift. I am extremely grateful but feeling overwhelmed and lost and don’t know how to start.

The new bed is 6 meters by 30 meters. Two feet off the ground. Filled with top soil. Right by the east facing wall. 1/4 is dappled in shade by a huge poplar. Very sunny throughout the day (Hydrangeas macrophyllas used to get burned here and had to be removed to shadier part) . Corner of the space used to get extremely boggy during winter, but with the additional two feet of top soil it may not be as much of an issue. It is heavy clay underneath the flower bed.

I have 18 peonies (bareroot from this winter in pots, current shorting up lovely baby leaves)
20 rose bush in pots. Small max 90cm bush type
4 climbing roses
10 hydrangeas various sizes
8 hostas (bare root from this winter and current in veg bed)
8 viburnums
6 lavenders in pots
and various other stuff from secret gardening club that are taking up precious space in veg bed.
3 mock oranges
2 Persian iron wood bush
100 summer bulbs arriving soon.

Thanks!!

I am hoping to eventually develop a bed with all season interest but right now I just need something to get started.

should I put the roses in front and peonies right behind the roses? or plant them alternatively? As in a pattern of three peonies/three roses/three peonies. At the very forefront I should have something like alchemilla? Or creeping phlox to hang over the edge?

what do I plant in the back of the border?
should I create a path in the middle as access for the inevitable weeding and feeding?

6 metres by 30 metres is a substantial area to tackle all in one go.

Dividing the area up into five sections of 6 x 6 metres would make it more manageable. Paths and stepping stones delineating each areas would make it more accessible. Beds could be curved, circular, diamond, triangular etc.

Options for planting - (choosing one or two ideas, not all!).
Each bed could highlight a season - so winter interest, spring, early summer, late summer autumn. This would mean all the beds wouldn't need attention at the same time.
Each bed could have a theme - eg rose garden with complementary planting, herb garden, shaded planting area, and so on.
You could have a central bed with the 2 beds either side which mirror each other (ABCBA pattern)
Curved beds with a graded height in each from front to back or semicircular seasonal planting, so there is always a ribbon of interest in each bed throughout the year.
I will try and upload some sketches of design ideas...

This one has diamond-shaped beds surrounded by access paths and decorative gravel which could be planted with low ground cover planting.

and curved beds...

suns rays shaped beds...
Having similar trees or larger shrubs in each would provide a link across the beds.

Plan the shape and size of your beds you prefer. Use bricks or ropes and bamboo canes to mark out the paths, stepping stones and bedding areas. It will then be possible to see any areas that are inaccessible or don't flow well or look unbalanced; and make adjustments before you begin any planting.

That is a big bed! Do you have a colour scheme? It can make a bed look more cohesive. My big bed for example is purple and blue with orange for a pop of colour. I have some white and pink but absolutely no red or yellow.

I would start by placing the biggest plants, in particular the hydrangeas. You have 10 so one every 3 metres, but some could get to 2m wide. If it's a sunny bed though many hydrangeas won't do well.

I wouldn't put peonies behind roses. And personally I wouldn't put several roses together unless they are the same or vey similar. Roses are "brides" they need bridesmaids and guests to make them shine.

Peonies are lovely but have a very short season so you need something else to follow them. They will likely be quite small for the next couple of years so use annuals to fill the gaps.

Wow! Do you really mean 6m x 30m? That is going to take a lot of plants... Even if your bush roses have a 4ft spread, a bed that size could take 125 of them!

wow thanks for the responses. I hadn't logged in for a while and wish I had seen them back then.

I have implemented a similar plan to the first sketch @brambleberries have created but I have two rather than three diamond shaped flower beds inside the bed.

I have planted 15 peonies along the wall behind the roses at 1.5m apart. I intend to fill the gaps with tulips this winter. @Frenchfancy they are definitely too small right now and grows ever so slowly. But the bed is seen from behind as well so I couldn't simply place the largest at the back. Worst case scenario I will have to move the peonies in a couple years time and put up with their inevitable sulking.

From left to right:
I have tons of dahlias and perennials by the terrace creating a summer bed on the left, with giant sunflowers behind them. Although in hindsight I may have cramped too much and have too many varieties, the colours seem to be clashing too much. These were postiplugs and I wasn't sure what colours they would be.

The two aforementioned diamond shaped beds are full of roses with geraniums in between. With large grandiflora in the middle and smaller bush roses all the way round. I intend to finish it off with penstemon at the very front to hide the ugly legs and black spots, as well as extending the flowering season. Penstemon Apple Blossom is my favourite.

Roses I have are
Gertrude Jekyll
Queen Elizabeth
Peace
lady Emma Hamilton
Lady marmalade

some hybrids in the middle in between the two beds
fragrant cloud, double delight, nostalgia
The two climbing rose will have their own structure to climb on creating a bit of height in the middle too.

The viburnums have been planted in the shade under the tree, creating their own little hydrangea bed on the right. The viburnum are used as a hedge and a windbreaker on far most side.

I know this place will look bleak in the winter but I am not sure where to plant the evergreens yet.