Planting plan: along the back of the house

Very windy today, and has been for a few days now. Some rain overnight. Heard the first cuckoo today, although others have reported hearing it a week or so back.

Along the back wall of the house there are two borders which face SE so get the sun until mid afternoon. With the patio to the front of each border plants can overflow the boundaries - within reason.

The smallest border, more of a planting pocket as it is all of 1m square, has one of the water butts on one side of it. Growing behind/over the butt is a variegated Jasmine: this Jasmine is slightly tender but appears to have survived the hard winter. Two Rosemary plants should mask the front but aren't obeying orders. At ground level Hypericum reptans - an alpine variant of St John's Wort - and a light pink Diascia that peeps through the rosemary during the summer (normally sold as a hardy annual, I replace if it doesn't survive the winter).

The main border is about 7m long by 2m deep - the depth is an average as the front edge is staggered.

I have roughly divided the description of the plants I have in this border into blocks. It is by no means as rigorous as it sounds with many of the plants repeated in other 'blocks'. It also makes it sound larger - but this is the easiest way I can see of describing it without a picture. Photos to follow later in the year of course!

From left to right (when looking at the house):

- The first planting block is not very deep. On the wall growing up a trellis is the purple vine vitus vinifera 'Purpurea' (grows to 6m tall) through which the late flowering Clematis viticella Venose Violacea (hard prune in spring) grows. In front of this there is Philadelphus Manteau D'Hermine. The daylily 'Sammy Russell' overlaps between this area and the next....

- The second block steps out a bit further into the paved area. At the back Echinops Ritro with Astrantia Major 'Hapsden Blood' and the deep purple Geranium pheum in the front. The last two are just coming into flower. The glorious Geranium 'Ann Folkard' scrambles through the whole of the two middle sections during the summer. Self seeded golden feverfew add additional gold highlights.

- The third block was backed with Clary Sage (Salvia sclarea) last year. This is a binennial plant that has self sown in the past - no signs of seedlings as yet. Gladiolus byzantinus (common name Sword Lily) is centre stage early summer surrounded by Astrantia Maxima, and more hardy gernanium (pink flowering) later on. The Eryngium I planted a few years back showed its form for the first time last year and the growth is showing strong and promising for a good display of its blue heads for this year.

- Rosa 'The Fairy' is meant to be a low growing variety (75cm with similar spread). Mine is a 15 year old specimen that stands at closer to 1.5m. It blooms all summer long and last year had a few flowers on it at Christmas! Chives and the species osteospermum (hardy in my garden) front it.

- The last block, closest to the back door, has Euonymus fortunei 'Silver Queen' growing up the wall (it grows as a shrub but willingly grows upwards when placed against a vertical structure). Daphne tangeutica (in flower now and scenting the air), Penstemon (similar colouring although not actually 'Heavenly Blue') and a splendid hardy deep pink Geranium that I must get the name of from my mother front it.

Daphne tangeutica backed by Euonymous 'Silver Queen'

To do in this border in 2009:

• Find replacement for Clary Sage if they do not appear.
  
• If Clary Sage does flower then collect seed from it.
  
• In autumn split the Astrantia Major 'Hapsden Blood'


• Plant an annual that has brick red colouring in it to stop the Daylily standing out so much. OR split and move it next year.