Dark Corner of Garden

[TheGopher]

I want a hedging plant for a very dark corner of my garden. There are two large trees forward of the hedge line which make the area behind very gloomy. We don't use this bit of garden for anything and don't want to. It's a very large garden so size of shrubs and trees are not a problem. I have planted aucuba in other difficult areas and love the light coloured spotty leaves, but there must be something else that will do the job? Whatever is planted will need to give good ground cover and grow to at least 5' to battle with the ground elder that comes through from the land alongside our garden. It needs to be light in colour. Flowers are not important.

Thanks in advance.

[TheGopher]

Should have mentioned that the area concerned is very dry, and also I don't want to plant any conifers.

[Thunderbird+]

I can think of a few that may do well there, the best one I think would be - Sarcococca (Christmas box) which grows to 4-5', about 6 species commonly available, the leaves are evergreen and the one with the lightest coloured leafe is- S. 'aurientalis'

Another that may be suitable is - Euomymus which will grow to about 8 - 10' also evergreen and some bright variegated forms are available - E. 'Aureus, E. fortuii 'sunspot' or 'Silver queen'

Box (Buxus) Will also make a good low hedge, but they prefer sun for at least 1/2 of the day, 'Gold tip' is a good one!
Good Luck T bird+

[Thunderbird+]

Sorry that should have read E. fortunii 'sunspot.

[Robinia]

Elaeagnus ebbingei is a lovely silvery grey evergreen shrub for a dark corner. It's a bit slow to take off & would need regular watering during the first couple of yrs, as would any newly planted shrub, but once established it grows quickly. Flowers are very small but smell lovely on winter's day......

here

[horty]

Hi Gopher

May be worth trying a varigated holly (ilex) or two, you can have creamy white varigated leaves with ilex "Milkmaid" (my favourite) or golden varigation with "Golden Van Tol" or "Milkboy", there are loads of others - too many to list, and they have the advantage of flowers and berries if you plant several. Also the birds love the berries, so you can pat yourself on the back for helping wildlife. Hope this helps. H.

[TheGopher]

Thanks so much for all your excellent answers. The plants you mention all seem just right for the spot in question. I have been 'googling' them for the past hour and have learned a lot.

I think I will go for the Holly, mainly because of the berries. I like to think the birds will benefit, one of my prime considerations. I will probably underplant the holly with ground cover. Any suggestions welcome.

Thanks, once again.

[horty]

Hi again Gopher, for ground cover, why don't you look into hardy geraniums, there are loads of them and they look after themselves and spread Johnsons blue is lovely as is geranium sanguineum and one that won't fail you in your dry conditions is Gernaium Macrorrhizum which is evergreen and about 1 ft tall and comes with white or pink flowers. They can range in height from a few inches to 3 feet, try "googling" them and I am sure you will find some you like, there are far too many for me to list for you. Good luck, H.

[TheGopher]

Nice suggestion horty. Unfortunately though ground elder win the battle with the hardy geraniums and I have already had to sacrifice the them in other areas for this reason. I need something like perwinkle but tougher!!! My garden borders fields so I don't stand much of a chance!
I suppose ground elder is good ground cover, but I don't want it!!!

[Thunderbird+]

If you looking for ground-cover to compete with ground cover and you do not want to use herbecides, then you have a real fight on your hands.
One plant I can think of which is equally invasive and rampant is 'Symphytum', it grows to about twice the hight and has lots of small bell shaped flowers that attract bees for miles around. I recomend this perenial a lot and my name for it is' the lazzy mans plant' it thrives in sun or shade and any soil type. All the Best.

[horty]

Hi Gopher, the only other suggestion I can make is ivy, which may stand a chance of competing with your ground elder, it to can be varigated in many colours though maybe if your hollies are varigated you would be better to go for our native green variety, apart from that, I think I'm stumped - ground elder is such a pain. Ivy is a good wild life plant providing winter cover for insects, though not the most beautiful plant I have to admit. I think Thunderbirds symphytum (comfrey) could work and is probably worth a try, (beloved by bees) beware though it spreads almost as much as ground elder H.