low maintenance shrubs for holiday let garden

onestep

hi all

As it says in the title really! At the moment the garden laid entirely to grass, but we'll need to prettify it a bit before Easter, when we hope to open.

My basic list so far: ceonothis (?sp), hydrangea, vibernum, spirea, rosemary, lavender, wegiela (underplanted with bulbs for spring interest). Am I missing anything obvious? I'll liven it up with some roses too I think. The bed I'm planning is about 12m x 2m, (although I might just do two triangular beds in each corner instead) faces south and is backed by a mixed hedge. Obviously I'd like it to look lovely, but I need to be able to plant it and mostly forget about it except for an annual trim and a weekly bit of weeding.

Any suggestions?!

TIA

RAS

Hebes? possibly a rose or two?

How about a small tree to give height? Even a fruit tree on dwarf stock? Or Rhubarb, and some fruit bushes (redcurrants require almost no work) For architectural value try globe artichokes?

J_J_Carter

Mahonia, cotoneaster, Aucuba Japonica, Lonicera nitida, box, bamboo, holly

glasgowdan

I don't like Hebes as they become too big and are hard to keep pruned nicely, meaning every few years you have to dig them out and replace with fresh young ones again.

I would go for some evergreens such as euonymus, holly and plenty of the other suggestions above.

blossomhill_2

How about eleagnus?
Personally I would give ceanothius a miss as it is classed as short-lived and can suddenly fail and leave a big gap
Pyracantha for autumn interest and for the birds

Itismehonest

Most people have covered the obvious ones.
Ceanothus is very pretty but can tend to die from underneath so isn't as low-maintenance as it could be. We ended up digging most of ours up.
Much will depend on where the cottage is - coastal, moor, mountain, valley & what type of soil?
Rosemary & lavender will require changing every few years as they get too woody.
Roses can be a nightmare if you're in a blackspot area.
It will probably be a bit hit & miss until you discover exactly what is happy in the plot.