Ideas for a south facing gravel garden

[JenaWren]

Novice gardener here. Can anyone help me with ideas for a south facing gravel garden. It's not a huge space - 3.5 x 5.5m.

I think I'd like a combination of evergreen and colour (pinks, purples and yellows).

My very long list of plants so far is:

Salvia
Honeysuckle
Verbena boniernsis
Verbena Brampton
Allium
Laveteria
Gaura rosy jane
Acquaalega
Echinacea
Penstemon
Jasmine
Verve ranunculus
Cosmos
Laveteria

Great list.

You might need something for winter structure. Like evergreen grasses or Karl Foester that holds it's rather lovely seedheads over the winter and then you cut down as the spring bulbs come through. I think I'd add bulbs too. I'd add a sedum autumn joy or similar that will again have seed heads over the winter. And some height from a herb fennel the bronze ones are lovely.

And something else evergreen .... hebes can be good and can be clipped or a pittisporum tom thumb. Or something topiary in a pot maybe.

Ooh great ideas Otters. Love the Hebe and Sedum.

I would also add some herbs. Rosemary gives you scent, flowers early in the year and an evergreen structure, so definitely would have that in there. Also lavender.

I would put in some bulbs too, alliums work well in a gravel garden and the seedheads are beautiful once the flowers have gone over.

Scent - of course. Thanks Catherine. Herbs would be a lovely addition.

Cistus and helianthemum. Both rather confusingly known as rock rose. Cistus have large pink or white flowers and grow into sizeable shrubs while helianthemum also come in yellow, orange and red and are brilliant for the front of the border.
Stachys, or lambs ears.
Sennecio which has silver leaves and yellow daisy type flowers. They are all evergreen( or eversilver!)
Sage would also work well among the herbs. You can get ones with purple leaves.

Check out Beth Chatto gravel garden- the original and the best www.bethchatto.co.uk/conditions/plants-for-dry-conditions/
I think stipa tennissima is a nice grass for movement

Convolvulus are lovely with their silver leaves and are evergreen, as are iberis and helenianthemums. sedums as someone else has suggested into the autumn as are heleniums and coreopsis. Classic delphinium and lupin shouldn't be overlooked. Climbing stuff like Clematis might add structure on a fence.

Exciting times, good luck!