Who’s thinking about creating a nice border to accent a gardening bed? Certainly gardening beds look beautiful without them, yet there can be many reasons to add a border to a bed and those will be listed below, along with many options for great bordering plants. Come along!
Some possible reasons to add a border
You want to signify the beginning and end of a gardening bed
You have a great curve to the front of your gardening bed that you want to add emphasis to
You want to accentuate a walkway or path that is beside or goes through your gardening bed
There are several plants that work well as a border. Some are more commonly seen as border plants than others. Many of these welcome being divided, so you are provided with many extra plants as the years go by. That’s awesome, huh?! These plants listed below are mostly sun loving plants, but there are a few shade lovers in there too-
Coreopsis
‘Route 66’ is a great variety that provides excellent flowering in the summer that persists for weeks.
Daylily
Many different varieties are out there besides the most common, yet beautiful, ‘Stella d’ Oro’. That variety blooms longer in the summer than many other types of daylilies. You have to watch which variety you are buying when purchasing a daylily intended for a border. Some types are smaller than others. Some of my favorites are ‘Happy Returns’ and ‘Mini Pearl’.
Dianthus
‘Firewitch’ has a late spring- early summer bloom that boasts beautiful purplish pink flowers.
Liriope
Most commonly called ‘monkey grass’, there are several varieties available. One with a variegated leaf is an especially nice contrast amongst other plants.
Coral Bells
Most are part-shade to full shade, and make great borders in a shadier spot. Some of my favorites are ‘Caramel’ for its fun colorful foliage and ‘Blue Ridge’ for its deep forest green coloring.
Hostas
Make a beautiful border in shadier spots! Around the trunk of a tree or at the front of a gardening bed, hostas are a gorgeous selection for a shade border. I personally think a few different varieties of hostas together make a beautiful statement, such as ‘Fragrant Blue’, ‘June’, and ‘Golden Tiara’.
Creeping Phlox
Great for part-shade to full sun, look for botanical name ‘Phlox Subulata’ varieties for the creeping kind of phlox. Can look great as a border or cascading over an existing stone border or in a rock garden. Different colors include white, pink, and blue and they bloom in mid spring.
For larger borders- consider Pennisetum grass, Miscanthus grass, or larger Daylilies such as ‘Baja’. The larger grasses can also be a foundation plant for smaller border plants to go around it.
What are some great border plants you know of or have planted in your garden?