I must stress that I am definitely not interested in the type of low maintenance garden that you see on television makeover programmes. I don't want gravel with the odd boring plant dotted here and there.

I'm looking for plants that are well behaved, and don't need staking. Things that are gently spreading, but not invasive. Long flowering or interesting foliage would also be an advantage. I'm convinced that by choosing the right plants you can have a nice succession of flowers and an easy border.

I thought I'd start with snowdrops, crocus, daffs and tulips planted between hardy geraniums like Rozanne and Ann Folkard and G. magnificum. The geraniums would cover the dying bulb foliage. But what else??? and what could I use to give it some height?

The border is west facing and gets plenty of sun and the soil is sandy loam.

I was reading Graham Stuart-Thomas's 'Perennial Garden Plants' last night and he mentioned Gertrude Jekyll's trick of planting Gypsophila paniculata just behind oriental poppies. The poppies die back completely after flowering in early summer, and the gypsophila helps to hide the gaps. Sun and sandy loam would suit both. Gladiolus byzantinus will also flower early and then benefit from having its dying foliage masked. Maybe look at planting various lilies such as LA hybrids (but lily beetle can be a serious nuisance).

Grasses such as Miscanthus sinensis can introduce height, movement and create a veil through which plants can be glimpsed. They will also give colour and form late in the season, and will look lovely lit by the evening sun.

Dahlias might sound like hard work, but they are pretty tolerant plants if given a good mulch of organic matter. Not all need staking: Dahlia coccinea var. 'Palmeri' is in my experience sturdy and grows to about 3 feet. It has very dark, dissected foliage and deep red, single flowers, much more attractive in my mind than 'Bishop of Llandaff' because they don't have such prominent, clashing yellow stamens. Plant World (Devon) sell seed.

Asters (but not novae belgiae which often get disfigured by mildew) will provide pinks and purples in autumn. A x frikartii 'Mönch' doesn't normally need staking. Taller varieties can be induced to flower at a reduced height by being cut back in early summer. With regard to chopping back various perennials, both to delay flowering and to avoid staking, see this URL: http://www.rhs.org.uk/Learning/publications/pubs/garden0805/perennialcuts.asp

There are so many plants that would be suitable for your site, I think the problem might be knowing where to stop. Alstroemeria, for example, would provide wonderful, exotic-looking blooms. The foliage is presentable, too. Consider Sedum, such as 'Matrona' or 'Purple Emperor'. Verbena bonariensis will provide height, a long blooming season and are a great "see through" plant.

If you have room, consider also Cynara cardunculus. It has huge, jagged, silvery foliage that looks good pretty much all year. It can get massive, though.

I'm sure you might well have already considered, and rejected, some of these suggestions, but I hope at least some are helpful. Good luck.

I already have verbena bonariensis and sedums, both of which are fantastic. My baby cardoons got a bit too dry last summer and died, but I'll grow some more this year. They do look pretty impressive.

Your suggestion of chopping back to prolong flowering and avoid staking sounds good. I read an article about it a couple of years ago, but I haven't actually tried it yet.

I would also recommend hostas, especially the large, variegated-leaf ones like Frances Williams. OK, I know they're a bit eighties, but I still think a good big clump is stunning.

Helianthus like "Lemon Queen" do a great job of adding height to my borders, and flower profusely for a month in late summer. They are slightly more than "gently spreading" but I go round the clumps each spring culling surplus shoots and this controls them well.
I find they don't need staking despite being 4' tall.

Geranium phaeum is great for shadier spots. Geranium canariense/maderense is absolutely fab - large, evergreen, beautiful feathery foliage, good pink flowers, self-seeds but easy to remove - what more could one ask of a plant? Geraniums are OK in general but need a good scalping after flowering to prevent them looking rank and overgrown in late summer.

A bit wild, but I like Lythrum salicaria for both height and colour in late summer. Supposedly needs boggy ground but certainly doesn't get it in my garden.

Sedums - lovely plants, and very adaptable.

Gladioli byzantinus - gorgeous colour & just about to flower :-) but I do find the foliage a bit of a pain. Because they're tallish it's not easy to mask the foliage and also it flops about everywhere before they have flowered. A very prolific propagator, this is now popping up everywhere in my garden. Because it's so lovely I've left it to it's own devices, however. Easy enough to dig up clumps or tear off the foliage if I get fed up with it!

I have found asters to be excessively invasive but may be worth it for the "Spring in Autumn" effect. "Sailor Boy" is an excellent fluorescent blue.

Physocarpus "Diablo" and to a lesser extent, the yellow version are good foliage workhorses. Just prune them hard. Also the red/purple Cotinus - fantastic foliage when pruned hard.

G. x. magnificum is a much better self-contained mound, more spectacular in flower, but only for a few weeks in spring.

Lavender? Daylilies? Hostas? Astilbe? Fuchsias?

For real height, Nicotiana sylvestris, but really only good as an annual. Foxgloves, similar problem and a short flowering period. Both will reseed. Various lilies in various heights, all the way to Cardiocrinum.

best regards

Chris

;-)