Plants in a flower bed

You can plant any plants you like in a flower bed. The best layout is to have the tallest plants at the back, for example a tree, such as a liquidambar, or shrub, such as abelia. Then choose some medium height plants, such as cordyline or fatsia, to plant in the middle, and smaller plants in the front, such as lavender, sedum, or silverbush.

There are plenty of options for a shady flower bed. If you want colour, a skimmia rubella will provide autumn, winter and spring colour with its red buds and white flowers, or a red robin shrub has beautiful red foliage. If you’re looking for plants that are low maintenance, grasses such as sedge ‘Bronze’ and ‘Ice Dance’ look great with lots planted together as they dance around in a breeze. And if you’re looking for a tree for a shady spot, acers, witch hazel, and wisteria can all tolerate partial shade.