What pretty border plants can I plant over the HC apron?

[K0k0shka]

It also doesn’t need much sun. I plant mine where it gets about 4-6 hours a day, I don’t water it, and it thrives through our six week drought this year. It also survived a lot of abuse from the chickens

Worth a try then, thanks!

 

[humblehillsfarm]

Worth a try then, thanks!

The seeds are super tiny and you don’t need to thin them out. You could probably just sprinkle them over the ground, then cover with a fine layer of gardening soil.

 

[Lizzy733]

Nasturtium is fun - grows like crazy, and can add a spicy flare to any salad. Leaves and flowers are edible and it has a tendency to ramble. We use it for underplanting in our garden bed, though they can also get quite big in well fertilized soil. They're very hardy, and can stand up to chicken abuse once given a chance to establish. And while they can 'spread out', we've never had them show up where they weren't wanted.

 

[Tonyroo]

I'd love to put some hostas there, but am having a hard time finding seeds or information on whether and how I can sow directly in the ground. I already have a couple varieties of hosta in my yard, but because of the dense hardware cloth along the ground by the run, I can't dig there to stick a tuber in, or even to plant a seedling started indoors, so I'd need to direct sow in the ground. Do you think direct sowing after last frost would work?

You could do that, fall and last frost in spring seeding is common for your zone.

I do know a mail order nursery that I got my hosta seeds from and they are viable seeds . Except there located in California if that is too far from you. I can share the information. Of course they carry a variety of different plants also.

 

[Tonyroo]

Nasturtium is fun - grows like crazy, and can add a spicy flare to any salad. Leaves and flowers are edible and it has a tendency to ramble. We use it for underplanting in our garden bed, though they can also get quite big in well fertilized soil. They're very hardy, and can stand up to chicken abuse once given a chance to establish. And while they can 'spread out', we've never had them show up where they weren't wanted.
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She doesn't have enough light for that plant. It will grow very weak and stunted under shade conditions.

 

[Tonyroo]

I'll post there website here, for anyone interested in fall plantings.

https://www.swallowtailgardenseeds.com/

 

[K0k0shka]

I ended up deciding to try hostas planted from seeds directly into the ground. Hostas won't mind the shade, they won't spread, and they'll still look pretty even when not actively flowering. And they are perennial so I won't have to worry about self-seeding or manual reseeding every year. I ordered seeds from this variety - let's hope this works out!

Thank you everybody for your help and ideas! I'll update the thread once I have something growing.

 

[RoyalChick]

As @3KillerBs mentioned, you do not want pokeweed to grow there. Wild birds will eat the berries (they're not toxic to birds), and poop out the seeds, spreading the plant. The tuber is nigh onto impossible to kill; I tried to get rid of it in the front bed at work.

If you cut it off at the ground whenever you see it sprout up, you might starve the root to death.

Pouring boiling water on the tuber helps as well.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

What about hosta, Vinca, and coleus?

depending on where you live, I'd not recommend vinca (periwinkle) as it's an invasive species in a lot of north america at least.

 

[MROO]

Marigolds. They're an annual and you can find them pretty much anywhere in season - even the grocery store. To get the bed started, plant fresh plants every year for two or three years. Don't disturb the whole bed when you replant, just dig enough for each, single plant. You don't have to deadhead, but it generally helps establish the bed more quickly. Only pinch off fully developed seedheads and drop them directly into the soil. You should have a self-replenishing bounty of edible flowers - for you and your chickens - within a season or two.