Show me your borders!!

[NCTDN]

Full disclosure - I know nothing about gardening!! Just moved house and our lawn has borders all the way round about 50cm out from the fences. There’s some bushes dotted around the edge. I think the previous owners put in lots of bedding plants but I really would prefer something that, once planted, provides colour year after year.
So I’m going to invest in some perennials or annuals ( I don’t know the difference). In my mind I’d like the shrubs to all eventually sort of merge so you can’t see the soil in the border. Is that right ? Is that what established gardens have?

@BlueRabbitWasNaughty your borders are lovely and your house is beautiful too!

Old photos of my little garden below. I don’t believe in brown earth past about May but some in winter is inevitable.

Perennials are the plants that come up every spring, flower in summer/autumn and disappear completely in winter.

Shrubs are like little trees; some keep their leaves over winter and some don’t.

If you want the really lush look you need borders deeper than 50cm. Mine vary from about 1m to 2m.

Can I just say that this is absolutely beautiful. I would love to know please what you have planted in the border as it looks a dream.

@olderbutwiser I dream of a walled garden to make it look like yours, it's gorgeous. And I agree, I prefer to have as much soil covered as possible (although I'm having to prune/remove things now as I probably went a bit far and didn't leave them space to grow).

@Rosemaryandlavender1 I will try and post my planting plans and hope you can read my writing. Some things haven't worked as we have heavy clay soil and lavender, for example, is struggling.

@NCTDN
have a think about different heights, shapes and a colour palette and perhaps winter structure and colour. Repetition in plants and plants in odd numbered groups is meant to be particularly pleasing to the eye.

I like grasses as they can give height and movement. Also flowers that spill over the edge of the border like geraniums but as previously suggested, bulbs with different flowering seasons are great. I love groups of alliums.

The first was my original planting plan but the second was what I ended up buying (due to garden centre/ nursery choice).

Have it how you want, it’s your garden. My planting is slightly too close so everything blends and merges. Other people like to space plants so they’re like specimens.

I like the merging idea. That’s what I’m aiming for but obviously it’s not going to happen overnight.

Love the photos so far. What are the plants that I’ve circled ?

They are geraniums, something like this

www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/geranium-dreamland-bremdream-pbr/classid.2000018877/

Thank you, that is massively helpful as I have just started to dig up a flower bed today.