What to do with lawn borders?

kimwp

honeybee1234 said:

kimwp said:

Raised bed and plant fruit bushes- they pretty much look after themselves (unless you want to optimise production, then you'll need to put some work in) and you get free fruit!

Now, I was thinking about raised beds for ease of gardening and to add a bit of interest - do you mean plant fruit bushes *in* the raised beds, or two separate things? Also, do you know what fruit bushes would be good to stay fairly contained, there isn't loads of room 🤔

Raised beds do look nice generally. I was thinking raised beds for the fruit bushes because they might not do so well in the clay soil. I have clay soil and raspberries have died any time I try. Blueberries need particularly alkaline soil, not sure how clay affects that. I have blackcurrants, but they are in a bed surrounded by a garage on one side and concrete around most of the rest, plus a lower garden level on the other side so I think that stops them being waterlogged. (Also, while I find them both plenty for my needs, the production is nothing like I've seen others mention on garden threads). I think they are quite happy to be chopped (at the right time of the year), so you can train them into a fan shape and they won't stick out too much (though not an expert)

Slinky

We have a silty clay soil where we are now, and raspberries grow very well in it.

Strawberries are good in raised beds.  Rhubarb seems to grow very well in ours. We chuck a load of well rotted manure on top of the crowns each winter to protect and feed them.

RAS

Look for basic gypsum rather than paying extra for "clay breakers" as its the main component. Had a plot with seam of raw clay, to which I added it and it made a huge difference.

Can you tell us roughly what dimensions your borders are? Also what aspect because some plants hate shade and others full sun?

The RHS has a good list of trees, shrubs and  perennials for clay soils. Remember if the tree's not been grafted, you can coppice and single. Just chop to the floor, allow to regrow, select three stems to make a "bush", reduce to one and when it's 3-4 metres, chop again. 

From the RHS list there are several things like cornus, hydrangea, mahonia, fuchsia and viburnum and many fruit bushes where someone else's prunings stuck into a pot now, half soil, half sand or grit, could be small plants by spring as could side shoots planted now from of any mounding plants like perennial geraniums, bergenia, bistorts. Personally I'd like to add a rose or two, preferably repeat flowering.

Do you have a local allotment site or gardener's club? They often have spare plants. 

Longer term, think colour palates. And look at taller biennials that can be seed sown, like foxglove.