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Gardening in the UK

Autumn Flower or color

philosopher1955

18 years ago

I have a neglected garden to put back in nik. Southern exposure front yard (small and windy) and 7 small terraces up the back cliff always facing south. Monotone green out my front window with a gappy hedge from clearing out brambles and ivy. Been very dry in the summer with quick percolating top soil over the chalk cliff under our houses. What to do? Slugs love chrysanthemums.

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Comments (5)

flora_uk
18 years ago
Lucky you! South facing seaside. The possibilities are endless. You could look at Nerine bowdenii for a start. The native spindle is looking good at the moment too. Loads of Mediterranean things. Take a snoop around seaside parks and gardens when you are out and see what is growing.
garden_nerd
18 years ago
Ooh yes, I can certainly recommend Nerines after seeing a large clump flowerinng madly this weekend. A very impressive sight at midsummer, never mind November.
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i am saying.. since you asked.. lol.. that the version in your pic.. is really ugly .. lol ... and if... after bloom.. next year... you could cut it to the ground.. by the following spring.. you will have a very nicely formed plant .. instead of one that is leaning everywhichway .. unless you prefer it that way.. and if you do.. so be it ... i once posted a slaughtering of this plant .. years ago ... worried that i got a little carried away ... and many peeps chimed in ... that they cut theirs to the ground every season .. but they were in warmer zones than me... so i ignored them.. lol .... mom had one at their house in the 1960's.. and i still have mine, as does she .. i would never be w/o one ... in my memories.. it is extremely choice ... it just needs to be taught a lesson once in a while... lol ... all this said.. in your location.. that seems rather dark [a presumption about summer when leaves are on the other stuff] .. with the competitors... you MIGHT have trouble starting other things .... your plants all grew up together.. forcing something new in there might be a challenge ... or not.. what do i know ... from one winter pic .... ken
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My Professor Von Klippenberg, from a few years ago. This picture was taken in 2010, and that was the last year it looked this good! I don't know why, the plant itself keeps hanging on, but it is actually a bit smaller now then it was then, and while it has lots of buds, its flowers seem to get a little later every year. I had another New York aster that was quite a bright pink, and it bloomed beautifully for a couple of years, but it has had the same fate as the Professor: I still have it, but it keeps getting smaller and the frost gets most of its blooms. I LOVE the way they look, but I probably won't plant anymore since it appears I need to replace them regularly. I guess the same goes for Mum's...mine usually only do well for 2 years or so. As far as fall color goes, I mainly enjoy different colors of foliage in the fall. All of my roses turn wonderful colors; rich yellows, oranges, reds and burgundy. I have grasses, daylilies which turn yellow, the dark greens of dwarf conifers, the light blue of my globe blue spruce, etc. My peonies foliage turns a nice burgundy-ish color, and I have a couple of different spirea and ninebarks which are very pretty this time of year. Almost no flowers, though!
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shrubs_n_bulbs
18 years ago
Lots of berrying shrubs, maybe mix some into that hedge. My Crocus are flowering up a storm right now, various different Cyclamen starting or finishing. All those should do well on your chalk. Variegated foliage is in colour all the time. Dahlias and Begonias will keep going until you get a frost or dig them up, so will many annuals.
lori_londonuk
18 years ago
Salvia leucantha has its long purple tassel flowers out now. It's fairly tender but if you're south facing by the coast you may be safer from frost than I am - maybe keep it out of the wind though. I thought mine had expired when we had one snowfall last year but it came back from the base in spring eventually. You'd need to check whether it's OK in chalk. My snails don't seem to be interested in attacking it.

But yes, I'd consider nerines. I suppose some kind of autumn crocus could be planted next year too if you fancy those.
flora_uk
18 years ago
And all those daisy things which seem to flower all the year round on the coast: erigerons, gazanias, osteospermums, anthemis and quite possibly Chrysanthemum frutescens. Cistus, eryngiums, genistas. You have a unique habitat there,use it. Don't try to reproduce suburbia with dahlias and chrysanths. You could grow a fantastic range of unusual stuff.

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