Plants for sandy soils with soft pink blooms

Plenty of plants, of a variety of shapes, sizes and colours, thrive in sandy soil, so it’s perfectly possible to create a full and attractive border even in these sometimes challenging conditions

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Plants for sandy soils
Plants for sandy soils

Quick facts

  • Sandy soil drains very quickly, so plants can be vulnerable in drought conditions
  • Sandy soil is quick to warm in spring, though cools more quickly in autumn too
  • Sandy soil can benefit from adding plenty of organic matter like homemade garden compost or well-rotted manure

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The planting plan

James Lawrence, RHS Principal Horticultural Advisor, has designed this simple, attractive, and most importantly, sustainable border design for you to try at home, with plants that are easy to grow, widely available and look good together.

This planting design provides a range of plants that, once established, will thrive together in sandy soil to provide a variety of interest throughout the year. A simple planting plan helps to create depth, interest and good coverage in a border.

Plants for sandy soil with soft pink blooms

© James Lawrence

Choosing plants for sandy soils

The Pittosporum, Escallonia and Abelia provide year-round evergreen structure. The Gypsophila and the dense Miscanthus provide some groundcover, so will help to reduce soil erosion, suppress weed growth and minimise water loss from the soil surface. Some of these plants will also attract vital pollinators to the garden.

Additional organic mulching, preferably with homemade compost, can further improve soil moisture retention and weed suppression. It will also help with your grainy soil structure, helping to bind it. Mulches should be spread when the soil is already moist, to help trap some of that moisture before it dries out in summer. 

1 - Pittosporum ‘Arundel Green’ 
2 - Abelia ‘Edward Groucher’
3 - Verbascum ‘Pink Domino’ 
4 - Gypsophila ‘Rosenschleier’ 
5 - Miscanthus sinensis ‘Graziella’
6 - Escallonia ‘Peach Blossom’
1 - Pittosporum ‘Arundel Green’ is an evergreen shrub with glossy green leaves with undulating margins. Older branches are smooth and dark grey, while younger stems are dark purple-red. Small, scented, near-black flowers may be seen in late spring and summer.

2 - Abelia ‘Edward Groucher’ is a semi-evergreen shrub with young foliage tinged red-bronze. The arching stems bear abundant lilac-pink flowers, each sheathed in a persistent red-pink calyx, givng it an exceptionally long season of interest.

3 - Verbascum ‘Pink Domino’, a herbaceus perennial, makes drifts through the border with erect spikes of dark-eyed pink flowers in summer.

4 - Gypsophila ‘Rosenschleier’ makes up the foreground of the design. This compact, semi-evergreen perennial forms a low mound of slender stems with narrow grey-green leaves and large clouds of small pale pink flowers in summer.

5 - Miscanthus sinensis ‘Graziella’, a deciduous grass, forms a compact clump of arching narrow leaves with white midribs and feathery, reddish flowers in late summer. These turn pale brown and last well into winter.

6 - Escallonia ‘Peach Blossom’ is an evergreen bushy shrub with small, glossy leaves and clusters of small, rosy pink flowers from early summer.

About sandy soils

Sandy soil can often struggle to hold onto moisture, as water will drain quickly due to the small soil particle sizes. By choosing plants that are naturally well suited to sandy soil, you can keep your border looking good and growing well, because plants that are planted in the right place tend to be stronger and more naturally resistant to pests and disease.

Once the plants are established, this will also reduce the need for extra inputs that less well-adapted plants would need, such as excessive water and fertiliser.
 

The challenge of sandy soil

Sandy soil drains quickly, so a soil with high sand content can be dry, especially during the summer months. Regular addition of garden compost will help with this.

Plants that enjoy good drainage are well suited to sandy soils, including many bulbs and other plants with underground buds that dislike winter wet. If your plants have adapted to naturally thrive in those conditions, they will grow much better. 
 

Why choose a sustainable planting combination?

Using the ethos of ‘right plant, right place’ to create a sustainable planting combination is a great for the environment. It helps to avoid waste and the use of products and practices needed to try and help ailing plants, such as applying fertiliser. It also creates robust, long-lived planting that benefits soil health and garden biodiversity.

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