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Re: Border help

At 11:03 AM 1/27/97 GMT, Alessandra wrote:

>Now: assuming I manage to do all the soil improving actions (manure, dig,
>mulch etc, and the soil there is pure clay), I would like to create a
>white-purple-blue-magenta border, and if I can put up with some absence of
>flowers in August, for the rest of the year I want blooms. 

Hello Alessandra,
  An edge of Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens', also called Ophiopogon
'Black Dragon', is very effective. I grow Salvia chamaedryoides behind it,
which contrasts well with its slate-grey leaves. If you can find a dwarf
purple Phormium, about 1.2 to 1.5 metres tall, to grow behind the Salvias or
whatever and to echo the grass-like shape of the Ophiopogon, it looks
particularly good.
  Our place in Tasmania is roughly equivalent to the zone of olives, I
think, and we find that Tradescantia virginiana blooms most of the year. It
comes in several shades of blue, violet, white and carmine, blooms in sun or
part shade. Clumps of it in harmonizing colours could be useful in your
border. It needs very little maintenance other than lopping in winter to
stop it from sprawling.
  I would suggest Aster novi-belgii, which also comes in a wonderful
spectrum of magenta, purple, blue.  However, it would need to be divided so
often that it would not be really suitable to grow near roses. Maybe
Erigeron speciosa instead.
  If Geraniums (cranesbills) grow well in your area, they fit in the colour
scheme and are also long-blooming.
  If you have space for one or two small Lagerstroemias, they could provide
clumps of lavender or maroon above the ground, which could be dramatic over
a cloud of Artemisia, for instance. There are some Lagerstroemia varieties
which are only about 1.5 metres in height.
  I hope the weather is good in Italy and you make good progress with
preparing your border.
  Elizabeth Morgan
   
 
  
Geoff  and Elizabeth  Morgan, at Swansea on Tasmanias East Coast. 
He mangles wood she makes garden.
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