Secrets of a Head Gardener
Just like people, plants are individuals and have specific needs; you can’t take a plant and put it into the nearest available hole and expect it to be happy. Choose plants that are suited to the conditions you have to offer. Understanding what type of soil and aspect they prefer is the key to creating a garden where the plants not only survive, but also thrive and flourish. If you invest time, effort and money into good soil preparation it will pay dividends in the long term. When dealing with heavy clay or poor, sandy soil, we’ve ve found it’s best to improve mprove an entire plantingnting area all at once, ce, by digging in copiousopious amounts of well-rottedell-rotted compost and/or nd/or grit, for example,ample, rather than just st mixing a small amountmount into single planting lanting holes. Allow trees and shrubs to form a backbone in the border to ensure that your garden benefits from structure all year round. Use vertical plants to create an apex, then place bushier ones for the middle layer and add low-growing, spreading ones as ground cover.
Choose plants that offer more than just attractive flowers. Use those with contrasting form, leaf shape and texture, as well as subtle variations in colour of foliage. Place them next to one another to bring their different characteristics to the fore and to enhance each other.
Repetition of colour, shape
and form ensures harmony, creates rhythm and guides the eye through the design. Planting in drifts and asymmetrical groups, rather than in traditional blocks or straight rows, will give your borders a much more natural feel. And don’t try to cram too many showy plants into one small area. Your star performers will benefit from having quiet companions to show them off. Think about what plants would work well as
a complementary backdrop. NEW