Brighten up some gravel

[Botoxbotox]

We inherited a large patch of gravel from the previous owners, about 3m x 6m at the front of the house. It's shady so I can see why they didn't grass it, but goodness me it's drab!

What can I add / do to break it up and brighten it up a bit, any ideas?

I have similar at front of house. I have created a lovely pot garden - lots of evergreen ornamental grasses, erigeron, lavenders, couple of fruit trees, some long containers with succulents along the wall etc. everyone says how lovely it is.

I am also planning to do what I did at another home, which is to scatter a small amount of compost over part of it - just a bit so it settles between the stones - and then scatter aquilegia and poppy seeds about. They will happily grow in the gravel and come back every year.

By the way, my gravel area does not get a huge amount of sun either.

My neighbour has added small sparkly pebble stones- just a few- and they look great.
Also you can buy tiny glow in the dark pebbles and mix those in.

Periwinkle looks lovely. The spreading one dotted in. Lovely green foliage and purple flowers.

www.thespruce.com/vinca-minor-vines-2132217

Nigella also grows well in gravel and is very pretty.

I have a mix of stones, brick colour and white, where the weed blocking fabric has given up I have lots of flowers coming through from when it was a seeded bed.

Rows of pots with Hellebores, Geraniums, Salvia, lavender, rosemary, a little bay tree, a big pot of sage and some pretty thyme, plus various other flowering plants (for bees).

Have a look at what is underneath. So if you can get to soil under the gravel - then dig some holes and pop some compost in and get plants in the ground as they will be much happier in the ground. Then ring the changes with pots - you can put plants in pots in the summer that won't be happy in shade all year but you can rotate them somewhere else in the winter.

www.gardenersworld.com/plants/container-plants-for-shade/