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Five fab plants that love sunshine

March 21, 2011 By Jill Anderson 2 Comments

 

www.jillandersonblog.co.uk

A sunny bank in my garden.

Dry, sunny spots in your garden need very specific plants, choose the wrong type of plant and it’ll grow pale and lanky, as it slowly dries out and starves.

Well drained soils are usually sandy or chalky, the nutrients quickly drain away leaving the soil low in nutrients.

But this needn’t be a problem, there are many plants that thrive in these conditions because they originate from areas of the world where poor, dry soils are standard. They have cleverly adapted various methods of coping with these harsh conditions. Many have silver coloured leaves that refelect the sunlight, or leathery ones that don’t dry out, or a covering of fine hairs to trap moisture.

These are some of my favourites, they look good and are easy to look after.

HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS:

These are plants that grow, flower, die back and re-grow the following year.

Sedum:

www.jillandersonblog.co.ukThere are many different varieties; they all have a rosette of fleshy leaves that produce tall stems topped with clusters of small starry flowers that last for weeks in late summer. The flowers have the added bonus of attracting bees, hoverflies and butterflies.

One of my favourites is Sedum Purple Emperor, it’s plum-coloured foliage and pink-red flowers  fade to amber-brown in autumn. It makes a stunning contrast with silver-leaved plants.

60cm high x 50cm wide.

Echinops ritro (globe thistle):

www.jillandersonblog.co.ukThis is a tall, rather striking looking plant with soft, grey-green, spiky leaves that are grey underneath. The steely-blue globe shaped flowers grow on white stems, perfect for naturalistic planting.

Leave as long as possible in the autumn to enjoy the architectural shape, then cut back to ground level.

1 m high x 80cm wide.

 

 

Euphorbia characias wulfenii (Spurge):

There are lots of different types of Euphorbia, this one is tall (1m high) with blue-green foliage and acid www.jillandersonblog.co.ukgreen flowers in late spring. It’s a wonderful foil for all the yellows and blues around at this time of year.

Remove the spent flowering stems, but take care because the sap is an irritant and shouldn’t come into contact with the eyes or skin.

1m tall x 80cm wide

 

 

SHRUBS:

Senecio:

You may still find this under the name Brachyglottis, which is what it used to be when I was at college .

This is one of the plants that are very common and therefore often undervalued, but it can be a real stalwart of a sunny border. It looks best when lightly pruned each spring to form a neat shape; the new growth will be a lovely soft silver-grey.

It has yellow daisy-like flowers in summer and does well in exposed conditiond such as roof gardens or the seaside.

1m tall by 1 m wide.

Salvia  officinalis (Sage): 

Herbs are very handsome plants and shouldn’t just be used in vegetable gardens. Sage has soft grey-green leaves and a nice rounded spreading shape with hooded pale blue flowers in summer. 

The purple version (Salvia purpurea) is a bit smaller but equally attractive. Prune in the same way as the Senecio. It’s at the front of the border in the photo at the top of the page.

Add moisture retentive compost to the planting hole and water during dry periods for the first two years until the plant becomes established.

A skilfull selection of shapes and colours makes a sunny border that will look lovely, and need little attention.

photos courtsey of ebase.com, schmidt landscapes

Related posts:

Talk- Choosing the right plants for your garden Stylish greenhouses for your garden All about using a coloured back-drop in your garden The RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013 – inspiring gardens

Related posts:

Talk- Choosing the right plants for your garden Stylish greenhouses for your garden All about using a coloured back-drop in your garden The RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013 – inspiring gardens
Filed Under: Blog, Garden Design, Plants Tagged With: echinops, euphorbia, plants, plants for sun, sage, sedum

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Comments

  1. Maria Fiorito says

    March 6, 2016 at 4:25 am

    Dear Jill, I have a question about your photo with the caption “A sunny bank in my garden” (within this link http://growingnicely.co.uk/five-fab-plants-that-love-sunshine/ ) May I ask what the plant you have front and center is, which has the leaves with a purple tinge? If you could reply, that would be great! Thank you!

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      March 28, 2016 at 12:12 pm

      I replied in email to Marias query, but just to confirm that it is indeed purple sage. It’s a great little shrub for a sunny well-drained place, I found it looks better if it’s trimmed each spring so that it grows new leaves that have brighter colour.

      Reply

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Hello, I’m Jill Anderson.
This is where you’ll find good, solid information about gardening, growing fruit & vegetables and how to keep it all looking good.
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The healing, calming power of nature in one photo. The healing, calming power of nature in one photo.
These wonderful autumn colours won’t be around for much longer. But that’s ok, because now is what matters, & their fleeting beauty makes them even more precious.
It’s easy to see how being among trees & nature is so beneficial for our health & wellbeing. 
Have a great Sunday.
Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it lo Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it look spectacular with this bold front door.
Today has been hard work, after a lovely time last week in Norfolk. The north coast there is spectacular. Realising these last few months, that there are so many beautiful places here. 
Have a nice evening.
Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Vis Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Visiting to see the Anish Kapoor sculptures, which are amazing, but unprepared for the beauty of the grounds & garden. 
Such a treat, worth coming to Norfolk for this alone!
Hope you’re keeping well, & managing to smile some of the time. x
P.S. more of Houghton Hall & Anish Kapoor on my stories
We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberrie We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberries, after coffee & cake, sitting in the churchyard - the cafe was full, & the churchyard is a quiet, peaceful spot..... as you’d expect.
-
One little advantage of lockdown is walking so much more, rather than using the car. Though it shouldn’t have taken something as momentous as this, for me to change bad habits 🙁
Hope you’re weekend is going well.
My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from a random clump of hazel on the garden. Now looking much better covered in winter squash plants, so you can’t see just how ramshackle it is. I like to think it has a certain home-spun charm .

Great for small space gardening, imagine how much room you need to grow these without vertical supports.

I’ve got 2 Uchiki kuri, lovely nutty flavour.
1 Turks turban, for its flamboyant shape & colours, though it also tastes good.
One unknown, grown by my grandsons in their homeschooled science lesson.
Close-ups of the squash over on my stories.
Stay cool my friends x
I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium reg I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium regale) which is flowering right outside our bedroom window. 
It gets sun for about 4 hours only, you can order the bulbs now for planting in September. It’ll reappear every year & waft delicious scent around your garden, or through your windows.
Have a very happy Monday x
It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be said for fabulous seasonal flowers that haven’t travelled thousands of miles ...... & are wonderful for biodiversity
A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-s A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-summer!) & it’s, mostly, all growing nicely.

Spinach, courgettes & garlic in shot here. 
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday x
Hope is a decision I’ve thought long & hard abou Hope is a decision
I’ve thought long & hard about how to view the tumult in the world we’re living in now. 
The only thing that works for me, is to choose hope.

It’s a tall order, but avoiding mainstream news & speculation helps avoid the anxiety, that’s often waiting in the wings.

One day soon there’ll be grandchildren clambering over this again.
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