A PATH TO GLORY
Soften hard landscaping with these plants – they’re masters of disguise and even help keep weeds at bay
Hard landscaping such as patios, terraces and pathways are the building blocks of any garden. However, any feature using concrete, gravel, brick or stone can look harsh without the softening addition of plants.
There’s a useful group of them that grow quite happily when squeezed into gaps between paving stones or crevices in stone walls, and these will soften straight lines as well as offering colour, flowers and sometimes scent.
They can bring an informal charm to uninteresting patios or can be cheap way of disguising paving that needs repair.
You can also lift an entire slab or piece of paving and plant up the space created and bring interest to a monotonously grey area.
And if these plants are colonising those gaps, it means weeds have less of a chance to invade!
As with any planting, you need to consider the aspect – is it a shady or open sunny spot? And in the case of pathways, how much foot traffic do you anticipate? Some plants such as thyme are pretty happy with being trodden on and will release their delicious scent whereas others such as camomile will only tolerate footfall occasionally. Here’s a selection for different situations:
Erigeron karvinskianus – this is a great little daisy, also known as Mexican fleabane.
I spotted it last week on a visit to Mount Stewart gardens in Northern Ireland where it had completely taken over, in the nicest possible way, the staircase at the back of the great house.
The flowers are variable from white to a deep pink and will keep coming right through to October. They’re very happy in a sunny dry location and good for wildlife gardens as bees and butterflies like it too.
Thyme – my choice for my own garden where paving slabs have