Garden plants for heavy clay
The soil British gardeners complain about most, and the most fertile ground in the country once it is worked. As with the vegetable list, the question worth answering is not what tolerates clay but what is actually BETTER on it than on the loam everybody envies.
How this list was built
Generated from the catalogue by the same engine that powers What can I grow? — 6 of the 48 shrubs and trees and herbaceous perennials and groundcover plants qualify. It is published because it names a question people ask, returns enough plants to be useful, does not return most of the group it is about, and rests on fields that are actually populated. Lists that fail any of those are on the coverage page instead.
| Plant | Type | Light | Spacing | Min. pot depth | In a container |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BrunneraBrunnera macrophylla | OrnamentalStraightforward | Dappled shade, Partial shade, Full shade | 40–50 cm | 30 cm | workable |
| BugleAjuga reptans | OrnamentalStraightforward | Partial shade, Dappled shade, Full shade | 30–40 cm | 15 cm | well suited |
| HostaHosta | OrnamentalStraightforward | Partial shade, Dappled shade, Full shade | 45–90 cm | 25 cm | well suited |
| HydrangeaHydrangea macrophylla | OrnamentalStraightforward | Partial shade, Dappled shade | 120–180 cm | 35 cm | well suited |
| RudbeckiaRudbeckia fulgida | OrnamentalStraightforward | Full sun, Partial shade | 45–60 cm | 35 cm | workable |
| WeigelaWeigela florida | OrnamentalStraightforward | Full sun, Partial shade | 120–180 cm | 50 cm | marginal |
This is one cut through shrubs, which compares every one of them on foliage, size and container suitability — including the ones this list rules out, and why.