No one wants a garden filled with high-maintenance plants – especially if you’ve not got the time, space or resources they need.
While some of these high-maintenance plants can make a beautiful addition to the garden, it’s important to know their care requirements and any potential problems before you plant them in your plot. Otherwise, you’re just spending a lot of money to add more species to your list of plants I’d never grow again.
To help you make informed choices, we’ve brought together some of the most high-maintenance plants, as well as offering some lower-maintenance alternatives, to help you create a garden that works for you.
1. Hostas
While hostas are easy to grow, they are slug magnets. While there are plenty of ways to get rid of slugs naturally, these methods take time and effort to implement, with no guarantees of success.
‘Hostas are widely regarded as one of the most high-maintenance plants in terms of slug and snail infestations. Although the plant is aesthetically pleasing, it does not stay that way for long once the slimy pests have made their way through the big leaves,’ says experts from sustainable pest prevention specialists Green Protect. ‘If you find that your hostas are being eaten year after year, it might simply be time to move on to less susceptible plants like aquilegia or foxgloves.’
What to try instead:
2. Japanese anemones
Loved for their late summer flowers, Japanese anemones are one of the best autumn-flowering perennials. When grown in containers, they are one of the pot plants that thrive on neglect, so it might appear that there are no downsides to this beautiful, easy-to-care-for plant.
However, its zest for life means that when grown in the flower border, Japanese anemones can quickly become invasive, high-maintenance plants. Not only does it spread through fast-growing rhizomes, it also vigorously self-seeds, meaning your garden can quickly become overrun if you don’t spend a lot of time weeding and pulling up seedlings.
A survey by The Hardy Plant Society lists Japanese Anemones as one of the most regretted plants purchased by its members: ‘it spreads too fast and is very difficult to dig out – it swamps other border plants.’
If you want to add this dainty yet vigorous plant to your garden, stick to containers, as this will prevent it from running riot through your borders. Alternatively, try one of these non-invasive, low-maintenance alternatives.
What to try instead:
- Aster Alpinus from Thompson & Morgan: Asters are a beautiful late-flowering hardy perennial and have a similar effect to Japanese anemone when planted in the border. If looking for a low-maintenance choice, stick to Alpine Asters, which are non-invasive and easy to grow.
- Anemone Nemorosa from Crocus: If you love the look of Japanese anemones, then perhaps try the Wood Anemone as an alternative. A British native flower, it is very slow spreading, so it is easier to control, but still features a similar bloom.
- Catananche Caerulea from Crocus: Despite being a perennial, Catananche Caerulea typically only lasts for a year or two in UK gardens – however, its self-seeding nature means you can enjoy this bloom year after year, but without the risk of being overrun.
3. Acanthus
Topping The Hardy Plant Society’s list for most regretted plants is Acanthus (also known as Bears Breeches). Words like ‘invasive’ and ‘triffid’ were commonplace in their members’ descriptions, with one response describing it as ‘worse than bindweed’. This is not a surprise as, despite being a thug, bindweed can actually have some benefits.
One of the main challenges of acanthus is that it only needs the smallest section of root to sprout a whole new plant. This means it’s almost impossible to fully eradicate once it’s in the garden.
‘Acanthus ought to come with a health warning on the label,’ wrote one member of the Society. ‘I rue the day I planted one in my garden and have spent several years trying (and failing) to get rid of it.’
If you want to add a statuesque plant to your garden, plump for a less invasive species with a smaller root network.
What to try instead:
4. Gardenias
Loved for their beautiful perfume, gardenias are the go-to for those hoping to create a fragrant garden. However, they are not for the novice gardener or those who cannot dedicate the time to care for these high-maintenance plants.
For some, the reward of fragrant blooms may be worth the effort, but for many, the blooms require an unrealistic amount of work – demanding the perfect climate, soil type and pH and a very frequent watering – to get those signature blooms.
For an easier alternative that will still reward you with a beautiful scent, try sweet box, an unkillable patio plant or one of our favourite scented shrubs.
What to try instead:
- Fragrant Evergreen Star Jasmine from Gardening Express: The queen of scented climbers, jasmine is a must for anyone hoping to bring a fragrant touch to their garden. Easy to grow, all it needs is a support such as a pergola or wire frame work.
- Night Scented Phlox from Amazon: Come nightfall, this petite plant fills the whole garden with its floral perfume – ideal for planting near a patio where you can enjoy its vanilla-like fragrance during an alfresco evening.
- Daphne ‘Eternal Fragrance’ at Suttons: With a deliciously sweet fragrance, daphne plants are known for their long-blooming period and slow-growing nature. Overall, very easy to care for, there is only one caveat. Daphnes don’t respond well to being moved, so make sure you’re happy with the placement before you commit.
5. Mint
A favourite herb and a must-have for mojitos, you should think twice before planting mint in your herb garden – whether growing mint from seed or growing mint cuttings.
While they are not high-maintenance plants to grow, they are high-maintenance to control and will require constant pruning and monitoring to prevent them from taking over.
‘If you plant mint directly into your garden, it’s very likely that it will take over the whole plot in no time,’ warns Christopher O’Donoghue, one of the co-directors at Gardens Revived.
In this case, it isn’t what to grow instead by what to use to control it. Instead, grow mint in a pot to keep the plant manageable – just ensure that you don’t place the pot directly on the soil, as they will spread out of the drainage hole into your garden.
Crocus
Single Galvanised Metal Pot
Available in five sizes, this galvenised metal pot has a small drainage hole, making it perfect for growing mint.
VegTrug
Vegtrug 8 Pocket Herb Planter Natural, 78x58x80 Cm
With individual pockets, this Vegtrug makes for the perfect herb garden – preventing the mint from taking over the planter.
6. Bamboo
While bamboo is a great garden screening plant, it is also one of the most common invasive plants and should be avoided in the garden. Even experts are warning homeowners of the risks associated with bamboo – for example, a Hampshire house was dealt with a £100k repair bill when their neighbour’s bamboo invaded their home.
Bamboo is sometimes called the new Japanese knotweed, and for good reason. The most aggressive forms of bamboo are known as ‘running’ bamboo. ‘Running bamboo sends out long rhizomes horizontally, which can travel many feet from the original plant, finding new spots to pop up,’ explains Harry Bodell at PriceYourJob.co.uk.
‘The underground reach of running bamboo can become a major problem for your home if not kept under careful control. Tough rhizomes can push up through driveways, paths, and patios and sneak into any cracks in the foundations of your home, making the cracks larger over time.’
The demand for constant vigilance – often with very little success – definitely earns bamboo a space as one of the most high-maintenance plants.
If you are desperate to grow bamboo in your garden, there are ways to stop bamboo from spreading, but they require additional products, which adds to the purchasing cost.
Alternatively, you can try growing Miscanthus Sinensis available at Crocus. It offers a non-invasive alternative to bamboo. This variety reaches 2 metres tall, making it a great option for screening throughout the summer months.
Amazon
GIPOBUY Bamboo Root Barrier Tree
A root barrier helps contain roots and runners, preventing the bamboo plant from taking over the garden. However, it does not offer guaranteed protection and tends to work better for clump-forming bamboo.
Amazon
Srendi 75 Litre Heavy Duty Pots
If you want to grow bamboo in the ground, consider burying a heavy duty pot to grow your bamboo in. This will make it look like the bamboo is part of the border but will contain those aggressive roots.
7. Box
A box hedge was once the hero of front gardens up and down the country, but with the rise of box blight and the caterpillars of the box tree moth, it is now one of the most high-maintenance plants that you can add to your garden.
‘Box blight is a fungal infection that can spread quickly through box plants. The fungi invade the plant tissue to interfere with its supply of water, which can significantly weaken your plants, causing leaves and stems to brown or wilt,’ says Jamie Shipley, gardening expert and Managing Director of Hedges Direct.
‘You can decrease the chances of getting box blight by clipping less regularly to allow airflow around the plants. It also helps to try and keep box foliage as dry as possible by watering at the base of the plant rather than overhead. Applying a bark or compost mulch can also help to reduce rain splash.’
However, this is quite a high-maintenance care routine and might not even protect the plant from becoming infected.
Instead, consider some of the best hedging plants for a lower-maintenance alternative that still brings shapely structure to your garden.
What to try instead:
- Hawthorn Hedging from Crocus: These bare root hawthorn hedging plants promise fragrant white flowers in May, followed by dark red fruit, and glossy green leaves.
- Taxus Baccata from Crocus: Traditional yew plants are the closest alternative to box, offer year-round greenery and is ideal for a formal hedge.
- Ilex Crenata ‘convexa’ from Crocus: For low-level hedging, Japanese Holly can be trimmed to look almost identical to a box hedge without the worry of infection.
Have you ever regretted planting any of these high-maintenance plants in your garden?
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