I am cautious about mixing things that are overtly tropical with things that are not

In the rear garden the foliage is markedly bolder, with plants that have stronger textures, including a selection of blue snow gums ( Eucalyptus paucif lora subsp. niphophila) with white bark. These have been planted alongside Trachelospermum asiaticum ‘Theta’, a climber that has extremely fine foliage, with silvers and reds running through it, and a slow, dense growth habit. In a nearby bed Sean has planted a Phormium tenax ‘Striatum’ with its bold upright foliage, the black mondo grass Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Kokuryu’ and plenty of palms.

The relatively hardy palm, Trachycarpus princeps, which has beautiful white leaf undersides, used alongside the closely related Trachycarpus wagnerianus, creates one of the most distinctive statements in the garden and as these palms grow their emphatic forms will be all the stronger. “I am cautious about mixing things that are overtly tropical with plants that are not,” says Sean. “Trachycarpus is like bamboo, I feel it can be used as a knitter. It does lots of things in design terms; it can be grassy, it can have an Asian feel, it can be f lexible. Here the Trachycarpus are treated as sculpture.”

In this distinctive garden, Sean has shown that you don’t need to rely on traditional structure to create a strong, coherent framework. All you need is to use distinctive themes that provide year-round clarity. Once that is in place then experimentation and impulse plant buying can still find its place. USEFUL INFORMATION

Find out more about Sean’s work at cistus.com