Here are 10 plants for landscaping that consistently perform well in UK gardens, from a small garden border to a full cottage garden scheme.
Each one is among the best low-maintenance choices for gardeners who want colour and structure without a long list of jobs to keep on top of.
Written by landscaping experts.
Hardy Geraniums: Perennial Flowers for Every Border
Hardy geraniums (not to be confused with the bedding pelargoniums often sold under the same name) are among the most reliable low-maintenance perennial flowers for any border.
They produce purple flowers, blue flowers or white flowers depending on variety, from late spring to early summer.
Many will keep flowering right through summer if you cut back after flowering to encourage a second flush.
They spread well as ground cover, suppressing weeds with their foliage, and cope with conditions from full sun to light shade.
Once established, hardy geraniums come back year after year with almost no attention and grow behind their edging lines.
That makes them some of the easiest perennial plants for garden beds, borders or the front of a cottage garden scheme.
Lavender: A Full Sun Favourite
Lavender is a classic evergreen shrub for a sunny, well-drained border, and few plants match it for fragrant summer flowers. Its purple flower spikes appear from early summer and carry on right through summer, flowering for months on end.
The small, tubular flowers packed along each spike are rich in nectar, so it’s easy to see why lavender is one of the best nectar-rich flowers for bringing pollinators to your garden, from bees to butterflies.
It needs full sun and doesn’t like sitting in wet soil over winter, but beyond that it asks for very little.
An annual trim after flowering keeps it compact and encourages fresh growth the following year, and it’s a fragrant addition near a path or seating area, where the scent gets brushed out as people walk past.
Roses
Roses remain a hugely popular choice among flowering plants, and it’s easy to see why.
Few plants offer as much colour, fragrance and flowering period packed into one shrub.
Modern shrub and patio roses are far easier to keep healthy than older varieties, many bred to resist common diseases and flower right through summer and into autumn without much spraying.
For height and impact, climbing plants like climbing roses work well trained against a wall, fence or arch, adding vertical interest to even a small garden.
Roses generally like full sun and a good mulch in spring, as well as regular pruning.
This encourages many varieties to keep producing flowers in shades of pink, red, white and apricot right up to the first frost.
Hydrangeas
Hydrangeas add structure and colour from late spring to early summer right through to autumn.
Mophead varieties produce big, rounded flower heads in blue flowers, pink or white flowers depending on the soil’s pH, while paniculata types produce cone-shaped white flowers that fade to pink as the season goes on.
Most hydrangeas prefer full sun in the morning with some shade in the afternoon. These are perfect for small gardens where reflected heat off walls or paving can dry out the soil quickly.
They’re also great in pots, making them a good option for a small garden or courtyard without much border space.
Leave the old flower heads on over winter for structure and frost protection, then cut back in early spring.
Dahlias
Dahlias bring some of the most vibrant colour of the whole summer garden. They flower non-stop from midsummer right through to the first frost.
Unlike most perennial plants, dahlias grow from tubers that need lifting, or at least a good mulch, over winter in colder areas, so they’re often treated more like a half-hardy annual than a true perennial.
Young plants go in after the last frost in late spring, and by midsummer they’re producing armfuls of flowers.
They also do well in pots and hanging baskets on a patio, and regular deadheading keeps them producing flowers every summer right up until the cold sets in.
Ornamental Grasses
Ornamental grasses add movement and texture that flowering plants alone can’t provide.
Varieties like Stipa, Miscanthus and Carex work well threaded through a border or grown in blocks.
Many stay attractive through winter if you leave the dried foliage standing rather than cutting it back until early spring.
Some ornamental grasses are evergreen, keeping their structure and green colour all year.
They’re also easy to grow, coping well with poor soil and drought once their roots are established, making them a strong option for a modern or naturalistic garden design.
Evergreen Shrubs: Outdoor Plants for Low Maintenance Structure
A garden that relies only on flowers can look bare for much of the year.
Evergreen shrubs like box, holly, viburnum and photinia keep their leaves and shape through winter, giving a low-maintenance garden structure and privacy even when nothing else is in bloom.
These outdoor plants are easy to grow.
Most need nothing more than an annual trim to keep their shape, and they’re happy in most soil types and light conditions.
A few well-placed evergreen shrubs also make a good backdrop for perennial flowers and bedding plants, since the dark, solid foliage makes brighter colours stand out.
Bedding Plants and Annuals for Instant Colour
For fast, reliable colour over a single season, bedding plants and annuals are hard to beat.
Marigolds, petunias, begonias and busy lizzies are all easy-to-grow choices for garden beds, pots and hanging baskets, producing small flowers and daisy-like flowers in vibrant colour throughout summer.
Because most bedding plants are annual rather than perennial, they won’t come back every year on their own.
However they’re affordable enough to replant each spring, and they fill gaps in a border while young plants of longer-lived perennials are still establishing.
They’re especially useful in a small garden or on a patio, where a few pots and hanging baskets can make your garden look full and colourful with very little effort.
Butterfly-Friendly Flowering Plants: Flowers and Plants for Pollinators
Beyond the plants above, a few flowering plants are worth growing purely for the pollinators they bring in.
Salvias and penstemons produce tubular flowers loved by bees and butterflies throughout summer.
Foxgloves and campanulas add tall, bell-shaped flowers that bumblebees in particular seem unable to resist.
Buddleia, often called the butterfly bush, is another good choice.
It’s a fast-growing shrub that produces long flower spikes in purple, pink or white, and butterflies will often cover it on a warm afternoon.
A mix of these flowers and plants, alongside the more familiar options above, is a simple way to bring more pollinators to your garden across the whole season.
Climbing Plants for Vertical Interest
In a small garden especially, climbing plants make the most of vertical space that borders and beds can’t offer.
Clematis, honeysuckle and climbing hydrangea all work well against a fence, wall or pergola, adding height and often scent without taking up valuable ground space.
Many climbers flower for a long period too.
Trained well, climbing plants are an excellent addition to any garden, especially where outdoor space is limited.
Choosing Flowers in Your Garden Design
With so many flowers and plants to choose from, it can feel overwhelming to find your perfect plants.
As landscaping and garden experts, we find that it helps to think about structure first and colour second.
A good garden design usually combines a backbone of shrubs and evergreens with perennial flowers for the main show, then bedding plants or annuals to fill any gaps.
Start with a few reliable perennials, then build outward with grasses, climbers and shrubs, choosing plants to create year-round structure.
Add spring flowers for an early season lift, then let summer and early autumn varieties carry the display through to the first frost.
Building a low maintenance garden doesn’t mean giving up on colour or interest.
In our experience, plants are easiest to keep looking good long-term when they’re matched to the soil, light and space they’re growing in, rather than chosen because they looked good in a photo.
Soon you’ll have flowers in your garden through most of the year with very little upkeep.
Get Help Choosing the Right Plants for Your Garden
At GGM Landscaping, we design planting schemes built around what works for your soil, light and the amount of time you want to spend maintaining it.
If you’d like help choosing flowers, plants, or landscaping features for your garden, book your free garden consultation, or call us on 07946 322717 to speak to our team.