Aspects of love
Find the perfect match for your garden by tuning in to the sun
WHEN I am planning a garden, one of my first tasks is to check out the aspect. We all know what that means when we’re buying a house or even just from watching Kirstie and Phil... is the garden south facing?
But when we’re deciding what to plant where – or even where to place our terrace or deck – we can easily forget!
Aspect is which direction the garden is facing, north, south, east or west, and how much light it does or doesn’t get.
Of course I could find this out on a map but that never tells the full story. As the Earth rotates, sunlight falls in the garden in different places at different times. Neighbouring trees and walls will cast shadows at various points. Long, narrow plots may have one half cast in shade by the house but the other end may be in full light. So out with your notebook and observe your garden through the course of a day and plot which areas are sunny and when this happens.
Ideally you will gather this information at different times of the year as well – the difference between the height of a winter and summer sun will affect the amount of light your garden receives. Similarly, deciduous trees in winter allow the sunlight in but they could throw a lot of shade in summer when in full leaf.
From this will follow where to site relaxation areas, such as that terrace, where outdoor lighting will be required, where you might need to introduce shade.
It will also guide you in your planting plans.
It will inform the choice of materials for hard landscaping too, for example, if it’s shady, it’s not going to be suitable for decking as the conditions will be conducive to moss and algae growth.
Spending the time to explore your aspect will save you making mistakes and facing expensive problems in the future.
Every aspect will bring different opportunities as well as challenges.
An east-facing garden will have sun in the morning but not so much after early afternoon. So for early risers and your morning coffee, this would be a lovely place to site some seating and a
table or perhaps your yoga deck for saluting the sun.
It’s good for plants that don’t like to be scorched by strong summer sun – for example the delicate leaves of a Japanese maple.
South-facing gardens are the ideal in many ways as they have the longest hours of sunlight throughout the day and are warmer and this is the best place for growing fruit and vegetables and many flowering shrubs and herbaceous flowers. A north-facing plot will tend to be darker and damper and suitable for growing a wonderful range of shade lovers such as hostas, hellebores and ferns which would wilt in all-day sun.
West-facing plots are darker in the morning but by late afternoon and into evening will glow in the setting sun and are the perfect place for outdoor dining and entertaining in the evening.
West facing is ideal for many plants and particularly camellias that do not like early morning winter sun.
If your garden is big enough, you might find that there is always some good light to be discovered in part of the garden. Either way there is always a plant for every site and situation.
Take time to get to know your aspect and you’ll solve so many issues in your garden before you even start!
HYUNDAI i10 1.0 T-GDI N LINE £16,195
ANYONE who thinks city cars lack real character and are best suited for boring day-to-day driving chores, need to check out Hyundai’s latest i10 model in the racy N Line trim.
That’s because this new addition to the five-door line-up takes its inspiration from Hyundai’s N performance division and features aggressive styling with performance to match.
Admittedly it’s not quite hot hatch territory, but nor is the price-tag of £16,195. For that outlay you get a stunningly designed, well equipped car that’s great fun to drive but also offers the practicality of five seats – many city cars only accommodate four people.
Powering the N Line i10 is a new three-cylinder 1.0-litre T-GDI turbocharged petrol engine with 100ps and 172NM of torque mated to a manual five-speed gearbox.
It sprints to 62mph from a standing start in 10.5 seconds (it feels faster) and has a top speed of 115mph, while delivering a combined 52.3mpg under WLTP testing with carbon emissions of 123g/km.
The vehicle looks dynamic from any approach, with plenty of N Line-specific design cues. For example, there is a bespoke N Line front grille with integrated LED daytime running lights, dual chrome exhaust tips, rear LED combination lamps and red stripe finishing to the front and rear bumpers.
There is N Line badging on the front wings, along with a black roof that contrasted really nicely with the bright red paintwork and
N Line 16-inch alloy wheels complete the look.
Move inside and that sporty theme continues with N Line cloth seats with red stitching, rear privacy glass, black roof liner, a branded steering wheel and gear stick and red air vent details.
The car is loaded with techno treats with an eight-inch colour touchscreen mounted high on the dashboard, full smartphone integration via Apple Carplay or Android Auto, Bluetooth with voice recognition, a DAB radio, air conditioning and lots more besides.
If you want sat nav, that can be added as part of an options pack costing £1,000. But these days many people use the navigation system on their phones and that works well on this i10.
When it comes to performance, the i10 N Line is great fun to drive. In busy town centres it is agile and easy to handle thanks to fairly light steering and a turning circle of just 4.86 metres and the good all-round visibility is a bonus when parking this compact vehicle.
It’s a car that can cruise at motorway speeds, although the volume from the little three-pot engine does get quite loud under heavy throttle, and it also likes to show off on the open country lanes, with good acceleration through the five gears and plenty of power on tap for overtaking slower vehicles.
The road holding is confident, and although the N Line model has a different chassis and firmer suspension set-up to the rest of the line-up, most bumps and dips are smoothed out along the way.
My only slight gripe was the lack of a sixth gear at times and also a slight lag in power at about 50mph, but those minor gripes aside, the car was fun, fun, fun all the way.
Comfort levels within the i10 are high and there is ample space in the back for a couple of adults, if the front seats are not pushed back too far. A trio of youngsters could sit comfortably on long journeys without too many complaints.
Storage options are good for the sector, with a boot capacity that ranges from 252 to 1,050 litres with the 60:40 split-folding rear seats dropped down. And there are various cubby holes to tuck away bits and pieces throughout the cabin, including front and rear door pockets, a glovebox, cup holders and a handy tray.
The i10 was awarded four stars when tested for its Euro NCAP safety rating – quite high for this type of vehicle.
Safety kit, as standard, includes the likes of lane departure warning with lane keep assist, forward collision warning system with autonomous emergency braking, driver attention warning, high beam assist and ecall which can dial the emergency services should the car be involved in a serious collision.
All in all, the Hyundai i10 N Line model is a fabulous little car that’s very big on style, performance, technology and practicality. Factor in the enjoyment factor too and it is certainly one to watch in the small five-door hatch segment.
In busy town centres it is agile and easy to handle thanks to fairly light steering