Here you will find plants which will not snap in the gentlest breeze, or keep you waiting for growth until a Mediterranean sun appears. We will introduce you to plants which thrive even if we forget to water or prune them, and plants which will just grow on and do their thing in spite of our best efforts to kill them!
We are talking about plants which will generally be robust, so at your local nursery or garden centre look for plant labels which say ‘disease resistant’, ‘frost hardy’ and ‘vigorous’. Avoid plants labelled as ‘prone to powdery mildew’, ‘must be kept consistently moist’ or ‘needs protection’. Look for the clues on the plant label: the divas will easily identify themselves.
That said, you have to give a plant the best chance of independent survival by ensuring its formative year in your growing space sets it up with the right foundation. Make sure it is growing in the right soil type: a plant which prefers light, sandy soil will struggle in heavy, wet clay soil no matter how much you will it to live. Similarly, a sun-worshipper may all but shrivel in deep shade and will refuse to share its flowers.
Good soil preparation is always essential and after planting, firm the soil around the plant and water well. Do not let the soil dry out for at least the first month after planting, although trees and shrubs will need to be watered for longer until the roots establish in their new home.
Once you see the plant growing away strongly, it is then that you can let go of the training reins and step back to let it fend more for itself.
It is worth noting that plants growing in pots require far more attention than those growing in the ground, especially in terms of watering and feeding as the roots cannot search for nutrients further than their confines. If you choose to grow plants in pots you are committing to the responsibility for their on-going general well-being.
It is easy to forget sometimes, but plants actually want to grow, whether or not we mollycoddle them! Here is a list of great ‘do-ers’ in the garden, with some suggestions made by readers on our Scotland Grows Readers’ Facebook Group:
1. Our editor’s pick is Saxifraga x urbium, known as London Pride. “It is such a low-growing, robust spreader which I use to fill gaps until I find something else for the gap and it thrives in shadier locations. The carpet of rosettes formed acts wonderfully as a weed suppressor.
“It is evergreen, produces pretty white flowers and never dies, no matter where I put it in my heavy clay soil, or how bad the winter gets with either cold or wet, withstanding temperatures as low as -15°C. It is easy to pull up bits and replant in other areas, giving you many plants for free. I honestly think that if you pulled some up and launched it at a bit of soil, it would take root and start growing!”
2. Sally Sillars chose Evening Primrose, Oenothera biennis. Yellow evening primrose is a hardy biennial that grows into a leafy mound its first year and blooms in its second year, tolerating winter cold to beyond -20°C so our Scottish winters will not kill it off.
“It is left to drop its seeds, helped along by the birds which I love but the seedlings do appear in some odd places. Nature sown seeds suit my garden which is sandy, west coastal soil, topped with annual mulch when I get a chance.”
3. Korean mint, Agastache rugosa, is Mia Lalanne’s choice. A clump-forming, non-spreading form of mint, this perennial will grow to 80cm-1.5m (2’7”- 4’11”) in height. The mint-scented edible leaves have an aniseed flavour and the spikes of purple flowers are also edible. It should be planted in full sun, in well-drained soil, but Mia grows hers in a different spot and has had no trouble!
“They are in an open, north-facing, whisky barrel that really struggles with water retention. What an amazing perennial root system. New fuzzy shoots were already popping back up in January, ready for a new year and with an extended flowering season, bees love them.”
4. Teddy Pitts picked Sedum spectabile (now known as Hylotelephium spectabile). Fully hardy withstanding temperatures down to -20°C, this is an upright, evergreen, perennial plant with succulent, waxy leaves, bearing clusters of small, star-shaped flowers in late summer to autumn. Sedums need little maintenance and once established, very rarely require watering, even tolerating moderate drought.
Sedums generally prefer light, free-draining soil such as sandy, chalky and light loams. They do not like clay or heavy soils but for Teddy, “It does the job for me on heavy clay and oh boy do the bees love it.”
5. If you want a riot of continuously flowering colour all summer long, grow hardy geraniums in moist but well-drained soil in sun or shade. Hardy geraniums are easy-going plants that can take a kick or two from a stray football and can even be cut back after flowering to encourage a second flush of blooms. They will die back in autumn and regrow in spring but require no winter protection against cold. Simply cut back the stems in spring and off they go again.
Nichola Hepburn says, “I’ve got a tall geranium with a pinky purple flower that grows like a weed and I have to haul it out otherwise it takes over.”
6. Every garden should have some Alchemilla mollis, or Lady’s Mantle as it is commonly known. A hardy, herbaceous perennial with soft green, fan-shaped foliage, it throws up large, lacy sprays of tiny lime-green flowers in early summer and grows in a range of conditions, including heavy clay in full sun or partial shade and, once established, is pretty drought tolerant. We think every garden should have some - find out why!
Anne-Lynne McCabe’s says, “Our soil is heavy clay, we're quite high up in East Kilbride and we get a lot of rain. Alchemilla mollis thrives, the bees love it and though they do self seed, young ones are easy to pull out. They're also handy fillers for flower arrangements.”
7. Easy-to-grow, cottage garden favourite, aquilegia, is Audrey McColl’s choice. “It grows in sun or shade, in all different areas of the garden and it self seeds, so lots of babies to dig up and pass on to friends. If you have different ones they ‘get a bit jiggy”’and cross-pollinate, giving you lots of interesting hybrids.”
Bearing dainty flowers in a wide colour range in late spring and early summer, once established, plants should not need watering or feeding. There are even species that are best suited to rock and woodland gardens.
8. Euphorbia 'Miners Merlot’ was suggested by Fiona McBride Arbuckle.“This long-blooming Euphorbia with dark green foliage and strong, upright stems emerges in spring with a rich, dark burgundy colour on vigorous new growth and stems. The colder the climate, the deeper the dramatic burgundy colours so it is a winner for us. Hardy to -15 ºC, it is also drought tolerant and will grow in full sun or partial shade. I love it. Can't wait for it to flourish again.”
Next Issue: we’ll look at some common plant problems to turn your plant killing days around