I'm a gardens editor and these are the plants I'd never grow again – don't make the same mistakes I made

I'm not usually asked which plants I’d never grow in my garden; quite the opposite, in fact, as I spend my working week extolling the virtues of the best perennials, hunting out easy climbing plants that will flower on autopilot, and test-driving the best trees for small gardens.

While you’d think that would translate into a picture-perfect plot at home, even a gardening editor can end up with as many flops as showstoppers. And that's even in spite of the fact that I'm married to a professional gardener.

Some might call that living the dream; a lot of the time, though, it’s the ultimate busman’s holiday. And this, along with a few pests, droughts, and one rogue packet of toddler-flung carrot seeds, means I have a few hard-won lessons to share with you...

9 plants I’d never grow in my garden again

From slug-ravaged hostas to bamboo that drinks like it’s on holiday in Ibiza, here is my own personal blacklist of plants I’ll never grow in my garden again.

(And yes, I’m the guilty party who let mint escape into the garden borders. Don’t tell my husband.)

1. Hostas

They may be a shady garden staple, and I may be absolutely besotted with them, but I’ve officially declared hostas one of the plants I’d never grow in my garden. Why? Because I seem to be hosting the gastropod equivalent of Glastonbury every single time I try.

Yes, slugs and snails treat hostas like an all-you-can-eat buffet, and I’m tired of the shredded salad bar look. I don’t have the time (or the heart) to go on nightly slug patrol, so I’ve waved goodbye to hostas for good and hello to snail and slug-repellent plants instead.

2. Potatoes

I was so excited when I decided to grow potatoes, so how is it they've ended up on my list of plants I'll never grow in my garden again?

Well, while they may be a crop I wanted to love, something else beat me to it; I suspect rats or mice, judging by the suspicious holes and missing tubers.

It’s hard to enjoy your homegrown potatoes when you’re picturing whiskers and scrabbling claws in the soil. A culinary dream turned rodent reality? Much like Ratatouille put me off Michelin-star restaurants, this one is forever ruined for me.

3. Jasmine

This one feels like cheating, but let me explain. I planted jasmine on one fence in partial shade, and wound up with something beautiful, fragrant, and positively thriving (honestly, it's covered the fence in scented blooms, and I love it).

Emboldened, I repeated the trick on the opposite fence, in full sun. Reader, it fried, and there's nothing on this earth that can convince me a crispy, brown, and utterly defeated plant is worth the hassle.

Lesson learned: not every spot is created equal. Jasmine might not be one of those plants I’d never grow in my garden again, but I’ll certainly be a lot more careful with its placement in the future.

4. Fatsia japonica

Another shade-lover with location-based mood swings, we have one fatsia japonica (or paperplant, if you prefer) on the shadier side of the garden, and it is undeniably glossy and glorious.

The one sat opposite in full sun, however? Yes, it's gone a sickly yellow and looks perpetually miserable. It’s either being relocated or being replaced, although that remains TBC for now...

5. Bamboo

I’ve always said no to bamboo in the ground (we’ve all heard the horror stories about this thuggish plant), but even in pots, it’s thirsty and high-maintenance.

With summers getting hotter and rain harvesting at the top of my to-do list, I just can’t justify something that guzzles so greedily. As such, you'd best believe that bamboo sits squarely on my list of plants I’d never grow in my garden.

6. Hops

Cards on the table: I would stop growing hops… if I could win the domestic debate.

My husband loves them; I don’t. They grow with wild abandon, tangle everything in their path, and have deceptively scratchy stems, which is absolutely not ideal for a garden frequented by toddlers.

Thankfully, he and I have now reached a compromise: one plant, one cane to try and train it up, and one last chance. If he can’t tame it, it’s compost bin time – not to mention another for my blacklist of plants I’d never grow in my garden again!

7. Mint (in the ground!)

I will undoubtedly never live it down, but I want it on record that I made this rookie mistake once. Once.

Yes, while mint might smell lovely, it becomes a green monster if you sow your seeds in the soil, spreading its roots like it owns the place (the one I planted a while back is still in the borders, merrily staging its coup).

From now on, it’s mint in a pot or nothing at all. Who'd have ever suspected this tastiest of herbs would have earned a spot on my list of plants I’d never grow in my garden, eh?

8. Box hedging

Classic, yes. Low-maintenance? Not anymore. Between box blight and box caterpillars, box hedge has become too risky and too needy.

We’ve swapped ours out for laurel, as it's glossy, evergreen, and (so far) far less drama. And, if box is on your own list of plants you'd never grow in your garden again, be sure to check out the best hedging plants to use as an alternative.

9. Toddler-sown carrot seeds

OK, this one isn’t technically a plant I planted, but it’s worth a mention. My toddler once got their hands on a packet of carrot seeds and enthusiastically "sowed" them across every flower bed, pot and crack in the paving.

Thankfully, carrots are excellent for companion planting, but it can be a little wearing to have rogue carrots popping up among the flowers. It’s chaos gardening at its charming best, but let’s just say I’m no longer keeping root veg within reach...

FAQs

What plants annoy neighbours?

In my experience, the plants which annoy neighbours the most tend to be those that block light from their property, like leylandii, or those that sprawl up and over the fences dividing your garden. Bamboo, for example, or anything potentially invasive, like Russian vines.

That being said, there are exceptions to the rule; our neighbour has a passion flower that sprawls over their fence and into our garden every summer, and I'm always so happy to see it when it does, not least of all because it's so popular with the bees!

While there are plenty of plants I’d never grow in my garden again, our outdoor space is still full of favourites; think pollinator-friendly blooms like scabiosa, wallflowers, and planters filled with salvias, lavender and Mexican fleabane.

Spring bulbs nestle under our magnolia tree, the dogwoods add some much-needed colour in the winter, and the ivy knows just when to behave.

A garden is always a work in progress, but sometimes, it’s knowing what not to grow that makes all the difference. Only you, though, will know which plants belong on your own personal blacklist. Good luck!