Low Maintenance Plants

Are you looking for low maintenance plants to make life easier? If you go out to work all day, one of the simplest ways of keeping the garden manageable is to choose plants that almost look after themselves. Here are a few of the many possibilities.

If the garden is very small, consider if a pebble or paved base with giant containers to hold small trees or shrubs might be the answer. Whether or not this method would be suitable, really depends on the size of the garden and the type of plants that you like.

For medium-sized gardens, choose plants for each area that go together as a group, due to their contrasting forms, their blending flower or berry colours, or the texture of the leaves. More importantly - or just as important - remember to aim for some interest throughout the year. Evergreens are useful in this respect and they are often easy to maintain.

Evergreen

The evergreen varieties of euonymus are excellent for placing against a wall, where they often flourish and reach heights of over 10 ft. Euonymus fortunei is easy-to-grow, tolerant of most fertile soils and will even thrive on north and east-facing walls, where the oval leaves form a dense cover. The variegated-leaf variety E. 'Silver Queen' is recommended.

Ground cover roses are a comparatively new way of obtaining a garden full of flowers for most of the summer with minimum trouble. The latest to join the successful, easy-care, Flower Carpet series is 'Red Velvet'. This rose, new for spring 2001, has similar qualities to other Flower Carpet varieties in the series: Pink, White, Twilight (a dusky-pink), and Sunshine (yellow).

Flower Carpet Roses really are easy - therefore they are especially suitable for people with minimum time for gardening. Fairly resistant to blackspot and mildew, they bloom all summer, the foliage is glossy, and they provide reasonably dense ground cover, smothering weeds. Pruning can be done with the sheers once a year - simply tidy them up after flowering, if a tidy appearance is required. Flower Carpet 'Red Velvet' may be grown on slopes, in patio pots, or as a low growing hedge. This type of rose is ideal for parks and urban spaces, as well as small gardens - a bonus being that the single flowers are what the raisers term 'self-cleaning'.

Mattocks Roses originally introduced the repeat-flowering, ground cover roses called the County Rose Collection. Many of the Counties have a rose named after them. For example, the white-flowering rose 'Kent', which has been very successful.

Too soft to smother the weeds

All plants that help to exclude weeds also reduce labour in the garden. Aubrietia is a carpet plant but although too soft to prevent weeds growing through, it is a low maintenance plant. Plants remain almost exactly the same year by year - flowers reappearing every spring and disappearing again, leaving no debris, just a soft green carpet of tiny leaves at the side of a path.

Well-behaved

Bergenia is a well-behaved evergreen perennial. Large 'elephant ear' leaves at ground level, exist all year forming a pleasant ground cover in a shady patch. In very early spring up comes a pink inflorescence, reliably and without fail - even after an extremely wet, boggy winter. Several plants grouped together deter weeds. Red and white-flowering cultivars, 'Ballawley' and 'Silberlicht' respectively, are worth searching for at flower shows.

Many of the heathers and heaths (Calluna, Erica) have to be counted among the trouble free, as also many hardy geraniums. The latter come and go in their season, providing colour in summer at ground level. They require little maintenance, although an optional trim back immediately after flowering often induces plants to produce a few more buds.

Not much attention required

Pulmonaria officinalis (also known as lungwort or Jerusalem cowslip) doesn't ask for much attention. Attractive, silver spotted leaves on P. saccharata 'Leopard' form a framework for forget-me-not-like blooms that begin blue, then turn pink. Alternatively, the flowers of 'Sissinghurst White' stand out well in the shade. Plants require only a one-off removal of old leaves and stems in May/June at the end of the spring flowering period.

The fresh shoots of stonecrop, Sedum 'Autumn Joy', take over and continue bold and succulently green through burning summer, eventually putting up an inflorescence that is always a draw for butterflies. Pulmonaria and Sedum between them will cover the ground towards the front of a bed and require minimum attention from the gardener.

Assorted evergreens and greys

Lavenders always seem to be reasonably maintenance free, although a trim once a year is highly beneficial. And secateurs may be used in mid spring, to cut out any weak or dead stems on newly planted specimens.

Hebes are low maintenance plants. Varieties of numerous sizes and flower colours are available, requiring minimum attention during the year, although some shelter at the base of a wall might be necessary in cold areas. The ones with deep red-purple growing tips can look very attractive, especially when placed with other evergreens.

When the arrangement of evergreen and grey-leafed plants is well done, a garden becomes decorative in all seasons with little effort after initial planting. In winter the yellow flowers of Mahonia x media 'Charity' and the evergreen and grey foliage of lavenders provide interest. In spring, the richly coloured tips of new hebe shoots continue the display. In summer, the various species of lavender begin to show their dark or light purple, white, or pink flower buds; followed by the flowers of hebe in similar shades.

Add some deciduous shrubs

Shrubs don't have to be hard work and not all of them have to be clipped at regular intervals throughout summer. I am a great fan of viburnums: some are evergreen; and others drop their leaves annually. They are easy-to-grow, very choice shrubs, with both flowering and berry features that appear in different seasons, according to species; and most are low maintenance plants. Fuchsias prolong the summer floral show and the hardy species only require cutting back in early spring.

Conifers

Wherever owners want absolute minimum toil, a selection of conifers can bring a colour scheme of golds, greens, bronzes and yellows to a garden. . Picea glauca var. albertiana 'Conica' has an interesting shape and is comparatively slow growing. And the golden foliage of Taxus baccata 'Aurea' can brighten a dark background.

Prostrate species spread their branches over the ground and prevent weeds developing. For example, Cedrus deodora 'Feelin' Blue' has bright blue-green foliage. The main thing to remember with conifers is not to plant too closely; otherwise trees and shrubs will quickly become overcrowded and may necessitate the labour of removal.

Exotics

More people are planting cordylines, the palm-like plant with a rosette of green or reddish narrow leaves, phormium with clumps of long, sword-shaped leaves arising directly from the ground, and trachycarpus, the Chinese Windmill Palm. These low maintenance plants are proving to be surprisingly hardy in the south of Britain.