Small Garden Design : Size Matters This person has clearly thought about their front garden and has planted a really well looked after box hedge, and they have bought two specimen plants the phormium and rosemary for the inside. There a a couple of issues here, firstly that the plants don’t fill the area despite being big, so
Read moreSmall Garden Design: Statement planting These two centurians are designed to mark the entrance to communal flats, bold plants that have been structurally pruned, that should state “walk this way“, the trouble is it hasn’t really worked. What is actually there is two rather sorry specimens that have failed to make the grade not only are they
Read moreSmall Garden Design: Don’t plant a problem! Another new garden border by the house builder, it looks OK right now, but all these plants are doing is storing up a problem for the new home owner (and as these are starter homes – it’s probably their first garden too) – thanks! OK, so what is wrong, well
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I have always loved grasses in the garden, I know they can look untidy sometimes, but like my own hair, a quick comb through and all is good again. The absolute best thing about this grass is – it’s blue, and the more sun it has, the more blue it is! OK it’s not royal or french blue, but
Read moreSmall Garden Design: Have a bit of a plan! ‘Naff’ is the best way to describe this – and because it was done by a house building firm, I am not insulting any homeowners by saying so! So what’s wrong with this. The main problem is the vinca (the green plants in the centre) these are tough grow anywhere
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I am a little unusual in that I am the only person on the planet (I think) who doesn’t like the smell of sweet peas, however I haven’t yet met anyone who doesn’t like geums, especially the red one, Mrs Bradshaw. This little innocuous plant, just sits in the ground, looking frankly, a bit run of the mill, but
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Hellebores: These are definitely garden essentials, they are ‘Royal Marines’ tough, not much likes to eat them, they don’t take over or swamp other plants, they are good for shaded, hard to grow anything in areas and then they flower in the winter when nothing else does! You probably know them as Christmas Roses, and the white one is lovely,
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Stipa Gigantea: Not everyone can have this plant in their garden as it does need a bit of space, not because it takes up loads of room, but because grasses belong in the open, so by planting tall grasses next to a wall or squeezed into a narrow gap they will end up looking like a squashed tutu. Grasses
Read moreSmall Garden Design: Banish Boring Bits! Not everyone is blessed with beautiful houses in stunning locations, in fact most of us in the UK live in towns or cities in road after road and they all ens up looking the same. So how do you go about improving the look of your house, without spending a fortune! Two problems
Read moreSmall Garden Design: Don’t waste potential In a small garden, everything must work hard and demand a place in your garden. Small gardens simply don’t have the space for lacklustre or boring plants or areas. If you don’t have much to look at so make sure what you do look at is gorgeous!
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