Filling gaps in shared gardens

Anne Swithinbank's masterclass on: Low - Maintenance border gaps

- Anne Swithinbank

Q I look after the communal garden for a block of flats, and we want to save work and money by filling border gaps with small permanent plants rather than seasonal bedding. What would look good instead?

Miranda Doughan, Ipswich, Suffolk

A Although bedding plants bring seasonal colour, they need care and attention to perform well. In addition to buying and planting in spring for summer colour, and again in autumn, there will be regular soil conditioning, weeding, watering and feeding to carry out. In any case, they say a change is as good as a rest, and perhaps the time has come to introduce a new look.

Your choice of bedding plants will have been dictated by sun, shade, dry or moist soil, so analyse the gaps you have and add this information to a rough drawing. Note the size of gap, the potential maximum height that the new plants should reach, any prevailing conditions, and also what kind of look they should add to the planting around them.