La Vie en Rose: Pretty in Pink

Planting and maintenance:

Ensure that plants are well watered before planting. Ensure that the ground to be plated is well dug and free of weeds or grass. Loosen the roots gently after taking plants out of the pot - this helps the plants to develop new roots and encourages them to establish faster. Place the plants in random, informal manner, four to five plants per square metre, with taller plants such as Digitalis, Delphinium and Anemone towards the back, and smaller plants such as Bergenia and Schizostylis towards the front. Ideally, top-dress the soil with garden compost, leaf-mould or well-rotted manure to keep down weeds and lock moisture into the soil. While the plants establish, ensure that beds are kept relatively weed free. After blooming, you can cut back spent flowers to encourage further blooms. At the end of the year, when all foliage has withered or turned tatty, plants can be cut to a few inches above ground level, though Penstemon is a woody perennial and should not be cut back hard. Digitalis is a biennial (ie it dies after two years) and should be encouraged to seed itself about (do not weed out seedlings). The Bergenia can be cut back to size at this time of year. In winter or spring, add another layer of compost or manure to protect the soil.

Planting scheme comes with full plant list, planting instructions and notes on maintenance.

Plants in this scheme:

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