Plants for gravel area

Martyn_H

I have a gravel area that is planted with various Verbenas and Echinops. There's an area by the summerhouse that doesn't get much direct sun this time of year where I had some Astilbes for several years. I've removed them as I was having to water them a lot, but can't find anything to replace them with.

Could anyone suggest a perennial that grows to 18-24 inches, doesn't need watering a lot and doesn't need full sun? Also, it should be immune to slugs.

twopenny

Is there weed membrane under the gravel? Because that helps keep the moisture in providing it's damp when you lay it.

Have you thought of a woodland mixture like ferns - there are lots of sizes and colours - Foxgolves and Wood Anemones etc. Autumn and spring flowering Cyclamen seem to do well anywhere and bloom when nothing else does.

Martyn_H

Yes, we have membrane. Part of our garden is woodland too.

Brie

Not quite the same thing and shorter than you like possibly but I did very nicely with some iron cross oxalis & grape hyacinth in a very stony patch at my previous house.  The oxalis dies back completely in the winter and only reappears about June when it first puts out 4 dark red and green leaves on a stem and then bright pink flowers a few weeks later.  I'm cheap and have bought them as "GluckGlee" (good luck) at Lidl.  The grape hyacinth put in a solid bed of greenery with the bright blue flowers in the late spring.  Both go from about 8 - 12 inches and I never bothered to water either except by chance.  

Martyn_H

RHS advises the Oxalis may be eaten by slugs 

Sarahspangles

Martyn_H said:

I have a gravel area that is planted with various Verbenas and Echinops. There's an area by the summerhouse that doesn't get much direct sun this time of year where I had some Astilbes for several years. I've removed them as I was having to water them a lot, but can't find anything to replace them with.

Could anyone suggest a perennial that grows to 18-24 inches, doesn't need watering a lot and doesn't need full sun? Also, it should be immune to slugs.

Dark leaved hebes. Small Phormium. Astrantia. All the herbaceous geraniums. Potentilla Abbotswood (the white shows up well in shade)

Katiehound

ornamental grasses?

Martyn_H

I opted for an ornamental grass, Molinia caerulea var caerulea.

alicef

A good site for looking for plant ideas for particular conditions is, I think, Beth Chatto's, for example

https://www.bethchatto.co.uk/conditions/plants-for-shade-conditions/?page=1-14

Martyn_H

I've bought several plants from Beth Chatto and also use it when choosing plants. The postage is rather expensive but the plants are well-packed and in good condition. 

The RHS site is also good for research, as you'd expect.

Dustyevsky

From seed, Dianthus carthusianorum is a little different and easy to raise.