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How white flowers can improve a small space

MANy regard their garden as a sanctuary; a tranquil place in which to rest, relax, muse and meditate. Nicki Holland is no exception and has increased the sense of peace and calmness in her Surrey courtyard by opting for a reduced colour scheme.

White is the predominant colour in this enclosed spot, where travertine stone tiles blend easily with the snowy blooms of cosmos, hydrangea, lychnis, bellis and Erigeron karvinskianus. Much of the garden furniture, including chairs, pots, a bird house and the wall of Nicki’s Victorian cottage, are painted a similar colour. Meanwhile fencing panels are a contrasting green, which sets off the leaves of the majority of the plants, some of which are trained to grow over trellising, adding to the different sight lines within the plot.

That’s not to say that other colours

“I love variegated leaves: they really elevate a plant”

are excluded though. “I’m not rigid about sticking to white flowers; I do have a few pinks, mauves and blues,” explains Nicki. “I love variegated leaves: they elevate a plant and create a certain energy.”

The white stone tiles and cottage wall reflect the sunshine, adding to the brightness and warmth of the courtyard, although this effect is softened by the canopies of eucalyptus and fig trees. At the same time there is plenty of fragrance, with honeysuckle among the plants chosen for their perfume, while a small ‘blade’ water feature adds the gentle sound of water.

“I am still playing with the garden,” says Nicki, who has lived there for more than three decades and worked in furnishings. “I’m quite eclectic and this space allows me to express my creativity. I’ve never set out to achieve a certain look; the garden has really just evolved.”

Among the downsides of having a predominately white garden is the compulsion to deadhead any blooms that have gone over, so that the overall effect isn’t spoilt by brown petals. Nicki also washes the pebbles around the water feature when they develop a green tinge. But she says these are small prices to pay for the general feeling of calm she gets from the space.

“To me it’s a very restful garden,” she says. “It’s a place I can just come back to and be quiet – it feeds me.”

There’s an air of tranquillity in Nicki Holland’s Surrey garden. Snowy blooms, travertine stone tiles and pale furniture tone well with a green fence, painted in a Cuprinol shade called ‘Willow’