Agapanthus caulescens? Salvia 'Mystic Spires'?

Nice plants, but are they hardy Bamboo? I read a question that you'd asked about hardiness of that Salvia which you'd bought a year or so ago. Did it get through the winter? I don't have a greenhouse - it's too hilly and windy.

Acanthus maybe ?

The Agapanthus should be, might need a bit of extra mulch on top. You're right about the Salvia though - acid test is this winter, when I shall be leaving two planted in the communal gardens over winter, so I'll get back to you at the end of the winter on that one, lol! You're presumably mild down there though?

Mild-ish! It's a bit exposed to the wind, but being within a couple of hundred yards of the sea, as the seagull flies keeps it a bit warmer than some places. The Cornish hedge I've been building will keep some of the wind off, though theoretically there'd be an eddy behind it.

Some winters we have one or two frosty nights. Last winter we had snow a couple of times and it was a lot colder, and for longer, than normal.

That close to the sea, you will be warmer, Beattie, even if you're not noticing it much, lol

hardy geraniums 'johnsons blue', forgetmenots,-- not the colours you said -I know- but Heucheras could look lovely when you look down...

what about one of those rather blue looking evergreens the horizontal variety that appear to flow down over soil and rocks ~ is it a juniper? it would look like water all year round?
oh and what about those blue-coloured grasses ~ lovely when they move in the wind

I know you said no shubs, but convolvulus cneorum is softly shrubby (less so than most salvias), and it has a lovely silvery leaf. Doesn't get tall either, and doubts about its hardiness in very cold areas aren't relevant for where you are. Phil

What about a central Dierama - a white flowered one, as a pesudo fountain, amongst blue-flowered geraniums? You could also have forget-me-nots and scillas for the spring before the geraniums flower.

I love Convolvulus cneorum too Phil - and have some in another part of the garden, but this bit is open to the rabbits that live in the adjacent gorse - and C. cneorum is like chocolate to rabbits! They nosh the whole bush at a sitting. You may like to ask yourself how I know this. I could tell you, but might cry... :-(

Hardy blue geraniums would be good if I can find a long-flowering variety. I've had Rozanne but have been disappointed by it not flowering for very long. Perhaps Johnsons Blue lasts longer - I remember it being a constant presence in the garden where I grew up.

The prostrate (careful how you spell this Beattie) Juniper is a good idea - something permanent. I've tried ornamental grasses, (they could play the part of reeds and rushes) but had attacks of amnesia when weeding and "mysteriously" lost them (*whoops, blush*). There are several Heucheras playing the role of boulders on the slope, and so far they do look lovely. They haven't been tested with rabbits though. I hope they do well.

All suggestions welcome - any more? Please?

Just re-read this and realised that the Juniper is a shrub and a fire conductor, so it's out. Rats!!

Are you ignoring me, or did we post at the same time, Beattie? LOL. I'm sooooo surprised to hear that 'Rozanne' didn't flower long - mine is still going now - since June!!!!

yes sorry ~ i wasnt reading your blog properly ~ saw blue and river and off i went!

Pampas grass? There's a dwarf variety...

i would love some of that ~ any specific requirements for it?

Sorry Spritz, I think you posted as I was writing :-?

I LOVE the fountain idea. The soil's really stony so drainage is excellent - I've never tried Dierama but it would make a great fountain. I've found a couple of white forms on t'internet.

My Rozanne's only just got going - very late indeed this year. I thought of moving it to this bed and then remembered that when a rabbit got into the area where it grows, Rozanne was one of the very first casualties, together with some nice carnations that didn't recover.

My Rozanne is on its second flush and still going - how maddening that rabbits like it too, Beattie! This area of yours is going to be gorgeous: white Dierama, frothy blues (omphalodes? ceratostigma?) and maybe some Ophiopogon dotted around . . .

Hi Beattie - all is forgiven! I'm glad you liked the Dierama/fountain idea. :-))) I've just looked in Roy Lancaster's book, and he says that Aquilegias aren't liked by rabbits, so what about blue versions of those for the watery effect if the bunnies like geraniums? He also suggests pulmonaria, so that's an early-flowering blue flower for you - do you know 'Blue Ensign'? Then Aquilegia, plus Nepeta nervosa as a late blooming blue. The Dierama or a Libertia grandiflora are both evergreens for your fountain....Sorted!

I Lost Salvia 'Mystic Spires' last year but Salvia 'Black and Blue' thrived

I had a lovely Salvia 'Black and Blue last summer but it didn't survive the winter, I'm afraid. :-( I miss it - it was gorgeous! Aquilegias work well here but I think something eats the pulmonarias - I suspected slugs & snails, but it could have been rabbits as well. I'll try a test plant and see what happens to it.

The Nepeta nervosa looks like a winner - smelly things don't usually appeal to bunnies. I see you have several Spritz. Libertia is a good suggestion for the fountain - especially as I already have some in another part of the garden.

Sheilabub, I've never grown Omphalodes - looks like a posh forget-me-not :-). I'll have to try some. I've planted a few ceratostigmas on the slope for the "stream" - so far, so good! The leaves are going super colours.

I'm really looking forward to getting more plants in :-)

If you have any more brain waves I'd be delighted to hear them - thanks for all the suggestions so far.

Omphalodes prefers a dappled shade position - i'm not sure whether it would thrive in full sun? I suggested P.'Blue Ensign' because of the colour - Roy L. actually recommends P. saccharata in his book. I have no idea whether diferent varieties of the same species could be either rabbit-proof or rabbit magnets, to be honest.

Ignored me too :-((((((

Another suggestion would be a fatshedera.

Whoops! Sorry Louise, mea culpa :-( An oversight.... I have acanthus in another part of the garden (IAPOG). It could play the role of "fountain". I think I'll try Dierama first as it's a bit daintier - "drops of water" and put in an acanthus if that fails.

I have a Fatsia IAPOG and it's grown quite a bit in the 18 months it's been in - that would be too big, too quick. I only know of Fatshedera growing up things. Is it self-supporting enough for a windy site?

I have lots of dappled shade IAPOG Spritz, now I've seen Omphalodes I think I'll get some. And there's space further up the hill where the "stream" "runs" next to some bushes where it could go as well.

Stickitoffee, not sure if you were asking about pampas grass or not when you said you'd love some - if you were, its prime requirement is sun, otherwise, not at all fussy. Non dwarf varieties require quite a lot of room though.

"Non dwarf varieties require quite a lot of room though."
I was thinking of that - and also, when you set light to them, they don't half go! Not one for the firebreak in this case!

Please could you, like, explain IAPOG to this technoprat?! :)

Beattie has it in one of her comments - 'In Another Part Of the Garden' Sheila. I wondered, too, until I spotted that!

Hi Sheila - it's not technospeak, I just made it up. It's an acronym for "In Another Part Of the Garden". I thought I'd explained it when I first used it -
"I have acanthus in another part of the garden (IAPOG)"
I was getting fed up with writing "in another part of the garden" ;-)

Sorry if I puzzled/ confused you, it won't appear in any online dictionaries - yet!

Thanks Spritz! :-)

Ooops! We crossed. :-(

No worries, Spritz! Thanks for helping out :-) How are you BTW?

Not 100% yet, but getting there slowly, thanks Beattie.

Pleased to hear about the upturn Spritz - keep it up! Nearly finished the elephant? Only tail and toenails to go, I hope.

I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry this morning, Beattie - I raked up a lawn-ful of leaves, and in the night there was a wind - it looks just the same today. SIGH.

My job for the day is to clear Horse chestnut leaves off my path border - I can't even 'see' the pansies I planted there - and you can bet that the snails have had a great time under the leaves! :-(((

Thanks to both Spritz and Beattie. Hadn't seen the phrase before . . . obviously I need to spend even MORE time than I do already reading everything on this fantastic site!! :)) (Don't do too much Spritz: look after yourself. One piece of advice I was given is "when you think you feel well enough to do something, don't!")

When leaf-clearing I never bother to try to do a proper job of it til ALL the leaves are down - sometimes that's not til late December. Before that I just aim to improve matters and remove the worst of the leaves where they're thick. Trying for perfection before they've all arrived is just an impossible task.

That's what I was doing yesterday. OH says he'll run the mower over the lawn to pick up leaves if I rake them in off the edges - but he's out and I can't use the ride-on mower. I'm leaving this lot of leaves. I don't want to, but I've lost my 'oomph' after tackling the path border. I managed that, though! :-))))

Another garden job licked today then Spritz :-)

Yup. This afternoon I'm going to try to 'swoosh' some horse chestnut tree leaves off our gravel and out across the lane to the verge, but I suspect it'll finish me off, so I'll take my secateurs out and start cutting back the herbaceous clematis that has taken over my Osteo bed. That won't be quite such an energetic task.