Empty bed under holly trees

This is my first time on this site and I am hoping that someone out there with more experience can help.

I have a n/e facing garden with two holly trees shading one long empty bed on one side. I have cut back the holly but very little light gets to the bed. I have planted some spring daffs which do come up but the bed is empty most of the year.

Do any of you wise gardeners have any suggestions? Is there any kind of wide coverage plant which could cover the whole bed?

I am a very busy mum of toddler twins and much as I'd like to, have very little time in the garden at the moment, so am looking for a quick fix to make it look a little less barren. Am looking forward to my twins going to school so I can finally sort my garden out!!!!

Any suggestions at all welcome!!
thanks
Vicki

 

Hi Vicky and welcome to GC, twins-wow, I bet you can`t wait to get the twins in nursey, you might just get a chance to drink a cup of tea whilst it`s still hot.

I have ferns under my hollys for general greenery, with a few bits of astilbes and Jacobs ladders through those. A quick fix means annuals which are very good for this sort of job, just need to sort out those that require a lot of light and those that will tolerate the shady conditions you describe. There are hundreds of annuals, biennials or perennials to choose from, so I would advise a trip to a garden centre or a local Wilkinsons in early spring and have a look at any you like the look of from the picture on the front of the packet.

 

Hi Vicki, and welcome. If you want something simple, that looks after itself. Go for Pachysandra,it is evergreen, has white flowers will grow under trees and is a very good ground cover plant.:gnthb:

 

Thanks David that sounds perfect will my daffs grow up through that or would it be best to move them??

 

No problem, leave them where they are, also shove in some crocus and bluebells.:gnthb:

 

Hi David, I just had a quick lokk on the web and Pachyandra seems to favour acid soils. We are alkaline with patches of clay. Do you still think it will be a good option as i really like the idea of something evergreen and low maintenance!

 

Trust me, they will do fine. It`s going to acid under your hollies.:thumb:

 

Thanks!!

 

The Pachysandra is a fine recommendation, and I think my hubby is starting to enjoy the garden as much as I do as he feels confident enough to recommend impatiens-he swears it will be okay in a shady spot. I`m suitably impressed-I think he is right too-is he David?

 

I would suggest ferns too. Loads to choose from and you can get quite inventive creating a fern garden, using decorative boulders and logs. I have a bit of my garden like this and it looks lovely, especially when the big ferns are in full display.