PLANTING FOR PETITE SPACES
Designer Isabelle Palmer, founder of The Balcony Gardener, believes that everyone can have their little piece of green, however small their patch
TRY LARGE POTS AND PLANTERS The bigger they are, the better their impact will be as this will give your plants room to thrive and you’ll have less watering to do. Big statement pots give you a real focal point and that sense of lush greenery en masse. Use matching materials for the containers, or at least materials and colours that complement each other.
INCLUDE A SMALL TREE Using a big pot means you can also have trees in your outdoor space to really give it the wow factor. Good varieties to try include dwarf silver birch, olive, twisted hazel, the Indian bean tree, eucalyptus, acer and rowan. Use lightweight planters or those on castors so you can move them easily. Or try miniature fruit trees that have been bred specially for their dwarf habit.
PLAN FOR PLANTS YEAR ROUND As you only have space for a small display, you want it to be green and vibrant at all times. Try an evergreen scheme including jasmine (a great climber), Fatsia japonica, Mexican orange blossom and viburnum. Or make sure you have four different flowering periods to cover the seasons. Annuals will make a bold statement and changes can be done affordably.
BE CAREFUL WITH COLOUR Small spaces can get overtaken by the use of busy colour, but this simple trick is all you need to harmonise colour and make your display effervesce in summer. Try a scheme using silver, brown, dark red and pink, combined with grasses for that prairie look. Use plants such as verbena, sedum, geum and salvia.
“GROUP PLANTERS ACCORDING TO THE HEIGHT OF PLANTS, WITH THE TALLEST AT THE BACK – ODD NUMBERS ARE MORE PLEASING TO THE EYE”
ISABELLE PALMER, garden designer