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Hardy perennials and other ground cover to add colour and interest to a compact woodland garden...

#1 · 25th June 2025, 5:55 pm

My plan is to create a woodland style garden, complete with a small lawn and wooden decked area, so I can sit outside and soak up the ambience. At the moment all that's in situ is a rather sorry excuse for a lawn, a large buckthorn, a cherry blossom (not woodland in the slightest, but i'm not sure I have the heart to just rip it out lol), Montbretia and a beautiful mature crab apple absolutely covered in lichen which just happens to be the most popular restaurant in the village for the local small bird community and visiting woodpecker. A fully grown eight trunked bay tree, which was looking very poorly, was removed yesterday leaving a nice big area for me to add my Mountain Ash and Japanese Acers to.

I have already stocked up on a selection of Hostas, Pulmonaria, ferns (including Dryopteris Erythrosora), bluebells and snowdrops however I feel that once the planting starts there will still be room to add more all year round interest and colour. I was thinking maybe some assorted Heuchera as I've always loved the look of them, but any other suggestions would be gratefully received. My living room has a large picture window that overlooks this particular garden, so I would love to have that "WOW factor" all year round if at all possible.

Many thanks for your attention and I look forward to hearing suggestions for further plant additions.