Low-maintenance garden design might include the removal of the grassed lawn, only to be replaced with paving stones or gravel, but it doesn't make it a garden. Life is what makes a garden a garden, both in plant material and in the creatures that use the oasis for sustenance and to pollinate. A concrete garden won't have life.
There is no need to take drastic measures to create a low-maintenance garden. It may simply be a case of replacing the plants that require too much care with plants that are happy to be left alone to do as they please. And there are many beautiful flowers, shrubs, herbs and even roses that will fulfill that need.
Low-Maintenance Flowers
The best flowers for a low-maintenance garden are perennials – those flowers that die back to the ground, become dormant through the cold months, and re-awaken in the spring. Annual bedding plants require a lot of work each spring. Every year the gardener has to re-invest money in plants as well as re-invest her time, digging and planting. Once perennials are in the ground, the hard work is done. Consider lilies, peonies, phlox, iris and hostas for easy maintenance. Look for bushy perennials that will quickly fill the bare spots in the flower bed.
Low-Maintenance Flowering Shrubs
The best flowering shrubs for a low-maintenance garden should also be the bushiest. A bushy shrub will fill in nicely, and there will be few bare spots to fill. Lilac, spirea, purple sand cherry, bridlewreath spirea, sedum and wigelia are the most common shrubs in gardens and for a reason. They are all low-maintenance and offer the gardener a beautiful display of color in spring with very little work.
Low-Maintenance Roses
Many gardeners fear roses, probably because they have to learn new skills, like when to prune, how to prune, when to fertilize, when to dead-head and what soil to plant them in. Roses aren't as much trouble as some would think. Once planted, the rose may only need minor care as it grows.
There are many roses that need little maintenance, other than a good healthy soil preparation from the start and the occasional cutting away of dead or old wood. The best rose choices for low-maintenance gardens are the rugosa roses and there are many varieties, easily found through online rose nurseries. Most rugosas grow to several feet high and wide. They are bushy roses and are very floriferous, often with repeat flowers later in the season.
Low-Maintenance Herbs
Most herbs are low-maintenance. They simply need a healthy beginning in the ground. The soil must be well-drained. Herbs don't need a lot of water, but the soil should be moist. And most herbs will grow well in windy conditions, as well as in hot sunny locations. Shrubby herbs originated along the coastal regions of the Mediterranean, so they are rugged and hard to kill. The best herbs for a low-maintenance garden include varieties of lavender, sage and thyme. These three are all bushy and fill a bed quickly to keep the weeds at bay.
Turning an established garden into a low-maintenance space does require work in the beginning. But a little research and thought in the early planning stages can result in a beautiful care-free garden.
All plants mentioned are above are hardy to zone 4, zone 3 in some situations.
Lorraine Syratt - Lorraine Syratt is a freelance writer, gardener and part-time antique dealer. Please see her full profile for more information.
Join the Conversation