I want to plant a memorial.

Hi all. Our beloved ginger cat Tommy is buried in his favourite spot in the front yard. It's dull today but here he would lie in the sun and greet us when we came home. For now we have marked the spot with a makeshift memorial. I would like to plant something nice there, preferably a ginger colour. The whole area is a mess anyway and needs tidying up. The rose bushes out of picture are not bad and I am more than happy to keep them.

Walking through Van Hage I saw a Peruvian lily that I liked the look of. On the internet I found that there are nice orange varieties. Has anyone had any experience with this bush or are there alternatives that would be better? As always all comments will be appreciated.
G.



Ps. At some point I want to remove the last paving slab and plant something to replace the gate. Again any suggestions appreciated.

G.

 

Nice Gary.....
My old golden lab is buried at the top of the garden. He loved the garden; he too loved to sunbathe.
I have made a planting of perennials.....trachelospermum on the wall and cannas, heleniums, baptisias, bulbs of all sorts, salvias and, for winter fragrance sarcoccoca, fragrant shrubby
Winter Beauty honeysuckle and mollis pallida witch hazel. A small stone seat too.

Orange flowers Gary.....check out kniphofia Mango popsickle. It is a dwarf very long flowering beauty. Orange heleniums make superb summer impact. Echinaceas like Tiki Torch and Marmalade are orange coloured. For summer only check out out the orange osteospermums.
Hedychiums? The Ginger Lily? Grow well in a largish pot. M
Whatever you plant I'm sure Tommy will be lovingly remembered

 

Aww, sorry about Tommy

Does it have to be ginger? When I buried my cat Moxie, I planted nepeta (catmint) and rosemary (for remembrance), amongst other things. Both would go beautifully with any orange content.

 

As for the gate ... when you say "replace" it ... does that mean you no longer want to pass through it? E.g. block it in? If that is the case, I would be tempted to plant a pyracantha "Orange Glow". It's an evergreen shrub with pretty white flowers in the Spring turning to orange berries in the Autumn (loved by wildlife). It is a thorny beggar, and falls under plants deemed as "Burglar Deterrent" Great so no one uses it as an access point, but something to bear in mind when it comes to an annual trim

 

@"M" the gate is already blocked off. I got fed up with people coming in through the gate, leaving it open and walking back out through the driveway. I nailed the gate shut. I once tried to grow a pyracantha in a tub without success. I guess I would have more joy planting it in the ground. It would definitely brighten up the hedge? I pay somebody to trim the bushes once a month. Once established it would be nice (but not essential) if whatever I put there could be trimmed at the same time.

G.

 

Hi Jack, if you like the Roses already there why not get another one. Perhaps " Orange Joy " or " Whiskymac " .

 

Hi @KFF the roses were already there when I moved in. They used to be everywhere. To be honest, I find them a pain in the posterior and very hit and miss. Mine on the whole look very spindly. I would happily replace them all but that would just be wasteful. I think what I plant would need to be one off to stand out from its surroundings.

@Verdun I once had a poker in the back garden. It started off great and then got out of hand. If I had another I would have to learn to keep it under control (which is why I am here ). It would definitely be a spectacle in that spot.

I really like the look of the ginger lily but it looks really hard work. Many reviews suggests they don't flower if the soil conditions are not perfect. The common consensus agrees with your idea of growing it in a pot. If I did I though I wouldn't want to move the plant indoors over winter. I'm sure it would be too heavy for a start. If I could get it to thrive in the ground I would be happy enough with that choice.

All the daisy shape flowers you listed I have looked at before for other parts of the garden. I have a dark orange version of the coneflower on my back patio. I have no doubt any of these in the right shades would make a lovely memorial bush.

G.

 

I'm still drawn to this one.

G.

 

Go for it Jack Sparrow. Does look good . Even better, it is your own choice so from the heart.....nice

 

Thanks @Verdun. I have until next spring to decide. I'm not sure yet how big I want it to be or what to put with it. I will have to replace the old tatty ground cover plants too. Possible something white.

G.

 

I will come back to this later as I have plenty of preparation to do first. In the meantime I am going to start a new thread elsewhere about what else I would like to do to this border.

G.

 

Today I found a local garden centre that stocks this variety. I told them that I would be back in the spring. They told me that plant wouldn't be available until June. That seems a bit late to me. Not that I know anything about plants.

G.

 

As far as I know Alstromeria dies right back to the ground in winter.
Which is probably why it wont be available at the garden centre until it starts to flower in June.

 

Daft question coming up. I'm looking at alternative plants to fill the gate hole. I would like something with big bright flowers. Is it possible to use a big shrub like a hibiscus and keep it small or is that just a waste of time? I'm conscious that small flowering shrubs would not be beefy enough to form part of the hedge.

G.

 

How about euonymus alatus compactacus as a gate cover? It's roughly the right size. It seems to have all the right attributes too.

G.