Perennials for clay soil

I have a heavy clay soil despite putting compost down for a number of years.
I have roses and a few shrubs which do well but apart from red hot pokers have struggled to find any other hardy perennials that survive more than one season .Half of bed is in full sun and the other in part shade. Any suggestions would be most welcome.(not shrubs please)

 

I have heavy clay too Doug, perennials that seem to do well here are heucheras, ligularia (especially like boggy conditions and don't mind a bit of shade) telekia (do well in shade too),hollyhock,acanthus,achillea(they'll grow anywhere),hardy geraniums(good in sun or shade), bergenia and of course my favourite of all daylilies they'll grow in any soil in a sunny spot, you can't kill em :D

 

perennials don't have very deep roots .... if you add enough compost and manure to your bed, and dig it in, it will be fine

and when you plant, dig a largish hole and add compost such as john innes number 3, mixed with a bit of topsoil, some well rotted farmyard manure and some perlite

 

Crocosmia and Welsh Poppies will grow anywhere.
I have Welsh Poppies growing in the dust in the corner between pavement and wall outside my garden.
Azalias and Rhododendrons tolerate Clay moderately well. They may be slowed down in their development, but still flower.

 

I too would agree with Simbad that daylilies are suitable for clay soil as too are heuchera. I would also like to suggest Potentila and Coreopsis which I have found cope well with clay as well.

 

Dandelion? Comfrey? Mint? Bindweed? To name but a few. Not to mention trees.

 

I may be wrong, but I believe clay based soil to be fairly rich in nutrients. So I would be thinking less about adding organic matter and more about making your beds better drained/more airy (ie digging in gravel).

Anyway, shady side - Trycrtis formosana, Polygonatum, Mimulus cardinalis and maybe even Uvularia.

Sunny side - perennial Lobelias, Camassia, Aconitum, Tradescantia, and (lets face it) Campanula are almost impossible to kill!

If you don't mind a little extra effort, you could plant bulbs in trays and lift for the winter.

 

You have to be a bit careful with that one. My garden is pure clay, and the last owners had dug in gravel. The result was that when I dug it for the first time, I had to use the pick axe, and I'm not exaggerating, with lots of experience of using the pick, some of my full force belts that would normally result in an explosion of soil and the axe head stuck on down to the shaft, resulted in a chip in the ground a couple of inches deep. It was like digging solid concrete.

Bulky organic matter expands and contracts far less than clay, and binds it together. That means that when the clay dries out and contracts, the organic matter holds the structure and stops the soil from cracking. Conversely, when the ground is very wet, the organic matter will absorb a lot of the water, helping to prevent the clay becoming a sloppy mess.

So clay is nutrient rich indeed, but the organic matter gives it structure.

 

Thanks - it's not a problem that I suffer from!

 

I also garden on clay. Over the years ive added lots of compost just to try and break it up a bit. To a certain extent it works BUT i still need to every few years, dig up my perenials, and break up the surrounding area's adding more compost. It gets very compact you see, especially if your walking on it to prune etc... .

Here are the perenials that do great in my garden.

Aquilegia
Hardy Geranium
Heleniums
Red Hot Poker
Jap Anenome
Day Lilys
Rudbeckia
Echinacea

I also grown Lupins. They do ok but struggle after July.

Hope it helps.

G

 

Clay soil can be difficult, but it's better than really thin soil over chalk. It's just a case of not giving up! The addition of bulky organic matter will help eventually. Make sure you don't try plant your perennials when the soil is too cold and wet. Break up the bottom of your planting hole and add some garden compost and coarse grit if you think you need to.
Once you've planted an area...don't go turning over the soil every autumn between plants for no reason. Some ppl seem to fork around plants even if there is no reason to do this! Remove weeds and then put down an organic mulch. Year by year it will improve.

I'd have a go with: Alchemilla mollis, Astrantias, Hardy geraniums, Hellebores and Hostas to name a few.

 

Oh yes, Hellebores do great in mind also.
They do not like full hot sun though. Mine do great in the shade and areas where they get sun in the morning but protection from the hot sun of the afternoon.

 

With heavy clay soil. I would dig out a pretty deep layer, put in some compost, peet, mannure, and mix it all in. Then plant. Oh, yes and some lime.

 

Thanks everyone for your excellent suggestions and advise ,as always.
Oddly had no problems with bulbs they just come up year after year and have multiplied.
Oh and I'm going to be a right pain with questions in future as I have just purchased a mini-greenhouse.