The plants should tell you how far apart to space them, how tall they get etc. I assume you've picked these as they coordinate well together. Do you have a few of each? The part of the border that's only 50 cm will be very narrow, I'd increase it to 1m there.

Hi Keswing. Which direction does the border face? Does it get a lot of sun, shade or a bit of both? Only reason I ask is because a lot of the plants listed are better for shade. It’s a good list tho and it definetly give you a jungly vibe. You don’t say which vareity the mahonia is, some are more like a ground cover while others are almost trees. My suggestion would be for Mahonia ‘soft caress’ https://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/mahonia-eurybracteata-subsp-ganpinensis-soft-caress-pbr/classid.2000019611/

Euphorbia has toxic sap so wear gloves when pruning which needs doing once a year and probably not recommended if you have toddlers/ pets that like chewing random plants😊. Otherwise it’s a beauty and ‘Wulfenii’ will grow big quickly so definitely one for the back. Personally I like to mix the leaf shapes up, so sword shape leaves (e.g. crocosmia) next to large round leaves (e.g. Hosta.) I’d keep the smaller heucharas and carex to the front as I think these could get swamped by the others. As said if you can increase the width of the centre bit of the border it will look more lush. 50 cm is only really good for one plant depth wise.

Also wanted to recommend Helleborus foetidus ‘Stinking Hellebore,’ great foliage and amazing flowers in winter.

Hi Keswing, try to reduce your choice down to 5 varieties - too many different plants will make it look bitty. Make sure you've got a contrast in lead shape & texture. Group in threes or fives (apart from large shrubs) if you can.

I always start by placing the largest plants in the border first followed by evergreen perennials such as the heucherea and then follow with the rest. Stand back and take a look at the whole scheme and shift things around as required. Only until you are happy with where you plan to put everything should you start to dig! Spacing for individual plants should be found on the info that comes with it but otherwise look it up on the RHS website.

I agree with Rachel that 50cm is a bit narrow - you'll end up with a row of plants rather than creating the lush jungle look you want. More depth will allow you to plant in depth and create height towards the back of the border with smaller plants to the front.

Good Luck!

Hi, great choice of plants. All prefer shade so, as Rachel asked, what aspect does the border face? This will dictate what will grow well. Skinny borders never look lush so increasing the size will create a more interesting border. Have a few ideas if the border is sunny.

Thank you for all your comments. The border faces north so is shady. The top corner gets a bit of sun though. The shape of the border is like half a dog bone so is wider at both ends (approx 180). Do you still suggest extending the 50cm area to 1m?

He he, half dog bone 🦴😄. Never noticed you already put a compass on your plan, doh 🙄, good that’s it’s in shade then. I don’t think you need to necessarily make the 50cm wider just increase the round bits so instead of that length being 290cm, you could make it 2 metres or less. I’ll have a think and maybe doodle on your plan later to hopefully give you some ideas.

I agree with Isobel that reducing the varieties but grouping them will give that lush look although I’m always a sucker for specimen style individual plants.

That would be great thank you! I keep seeing plants I like and wanting to include them so I’m going to have to try and show some restraint!

Rachelmidlands, apologies I was at work so only got to quickly scan your replies and overlooked your question. The mahonia I’m looking at is the Oregan Grape. I’d eventually like it to become a tree to provide a bit of privacy between the neighbours. I was thinking of putting it in the straight run which is the only area where we’re overlooked. I’ve hashed it on my new plan so you can see. I was hoping the cordyline might eventually look palm tree like which again is why I’m not sure where it should be positioned. I’ve amended my plan based on suggestions - reduced length of run to 2m and increased depth to 1m and made comments based on yours and others replies. I don’t know which plants to remove from the list tho 🤯. I have inherited some plants already but the others I have still to buy. I was thinking of buying online but have no experience of online plant buying. Thanks again for replying

Rachelmidlands this is brilliant thank you so much for taking the time to do this. I would never have thought to put the hostas by the bamboo but I think that’ll look great. I also like the suggestion to put the canna in pots that way I can decide where to put them depending on how everything flourishes.

Wow that is a whopping mahonia, but lovely too. I’ll take a look at the varieties as I didn’t realise they were all called Oregon Grape 😳 as you can tell I’m genuinely a novice 🤣.

I’ll probably venture to a garden centre and try and restrain myself, although I even ended up buying 3 Calla lilies when in Aldi today, they looked so lovely I couldn’t resist 🤭.

Thanks again and I’ll post again once I’ve planted.

Isn’t Rachel amazing? 💚 On the subject of buying plants online, some companies are brilliant and others are terrible. I’ve used Crocus, not cheap but plants are healthy and very well packaged. They supply Waitrose. I’ve also heard very good things about Sarah Raven Plants. Blackmoor are great for fruit trees. The worst sadly seems to be Thompson & Morgan 😤. Anyway happy planting!

Sonia thank you for sharing your experience, having thought more I’m just going to contact my local garden centre and see if they have the plants I need, they’re not open fully but are doing a order and collect service.

100% agree Rachelmidlands is great. She has been so helpful and I now feel so much more confident that I’ve chosen the right plants and am now looking forward to planting whereas before I was nervous. This site is wonderful, so many people happy to share thoughts and knowledge but without being condescending. Take care everyone and I’ll post once planted 🌱

Awww 😊💕 Glad to help. Looking forward to seeing your garden Keswing. 🙂

So I thought you’d like to see the finished result..... There’s a few more plants in there than initially planned but I figured they can be moved once other plants become more established.
I was advised that my canna’s wouldn’t do well without full sun so I’ve put them in pots on the patio and have put some calla lillies in their place for now. So after cutting out, planting the border and painting the grotty old fence (should I paint the concrete too?)here’s it is with a before and after.....

I just need to figure out what to do with the area at the other end of the garden now! Will probably be seeking ideas at some point soon. 😃

What a big difference the painted fence alone makes! You've got a lot more fence there to go.....