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The opium poppy, Papaver somniferum produces seeds that result in many self-sown seedlings.
Low-allergen plants
Alchemilla mollis (lady’s mantle)
Amelanchier lamarckii (snowy mespilus)
Anemone × hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ (Japanese anemone)
Cistus × hybridus
Cotinus coggygria (smoke bush)
Forsythia × intermedia
Hydrangea anomola subsp. petiolaris (climbing hydrangea)
Prunus × subhirtella (Higan cherry)
Stachys byzantina (lamb’s ears)
KIM’S TIPS
There are 10 million people in Britain who suffer from hay fever or have asthma, both of which are triggered off mostly by pollen. This can occur in spring, summer or autumn and makes the lives of sufferers unbearable.
Grass pollen is one of the main culprits, so if you suffer, you should definitely think of eliminating lawns and replacing them with hard landscaping such as bricks, setts, gravel and decking as well as planting a selection of low-allergen plants.
Many hedges too can produce pollen and should be replaced with low-allergen climbers or shrubs (see left).
Latin names
It can be very confusing when you first go to your local garden centre and are faced with long, difficult to pronounce Latin botanical names. However, they are used for good reason. Botanical Latin is like an international language used worldwide by botanists and plant enthusiasts. The method of naming was standardized by an eighteenth-century plant collector called Linnaeus.
While one plant may have several common names, it will only ever have one Latin name, which will also be the same worldwide. It helps if you can get to grips with some Latin names, as it avoids confusion when buying plants, or finding out more about particular plants.
The olive tree, Olea europaea. Quite often the species name refers to where the plant has originated. In the case of the olive tree, it’s clearly Europe.
Understanding Latin plant names
All plants are classified into family groups, which have:
• Family name, referred to as genus (or genera if plural), the Latin word for ‘family’.
• Species name: Within a family group of plants there will be differences in the plants, and these are the different species. This is the second part of a botanical name and it is called the specific name.
So, if I was a plant, my name would be Wilde kim! The first part of my name indicating my family, and the second part me as an individual.
So the olive tree is Olea europaea. Olea is the family name, or genus, and europaea the specific or species name. Sometimes a slight difference is discovered within a species and it is given an extra name to denote this. For instance, a variety of olive tree that had larger fruits and smaller stones was named ‘El Greco’, so its full botanical name is Olea europaea ‘El Greco’. It is normal for Latin names to be written in italics, and any ‘extra names’ to be put into single quotation marks at the end.
Part 2 (#ulink_871cfc72-8918-5626-b453-dff33b3ce573)
PLANNING YOUR GARDEN (#ulink_871cfc72-8918-5626-b453-dff33b3ce573)
When I first started gardening I remember feeling totally overwhelmed with the whole subject, yet at the same time I thought that slowly but surely it would start to make sense if I just had a go. I’ve since realized that although a positive approach is always the best one – after all, gardening is an intrinsically optimistic pursuit – you do have to have a plan. A good, well-researched approach will help you to create a garden that reflects your requirements and tastes, and you’ll soon discover, as I did, that planning a garden is as exciting as making one.
Assessing your requirements (#ulink_22d63c65-8396-5326-b666-d0eef3ed7aaf)
At first, the thought of tackling your garden properly may seem a daunting task, but this is where careful and considered planning comes in. Rather than rushing to sort out a small area of garden, and then deciding which bit to do next, it is much better to make one overall plan for the whole garden. After making a complete garden plan you can then gradually work through elements of it in your own time, and in a methodical way. This approach will also allow you to implement your garden design in separate stages. Not least, it will allow you to implement each stage as your budget allows. You can then plan for the expenditure required and fit your garden projects to your budget. Even if you only have a small budget available, there are still changes and improvements that you can make to any space.
Enhance what you already have
First, have a good look at your garden and decide what works, what you like that is already there and what you may be unhappy with.
Overgrown areas: Depending on the variety, many overgrown trees or shrubs may be partially cut back and rejuvenated, retaining some height, maturity and privacy. Quite often wall shrubs and climbers may get out of control and fall out from the wall; cutting them back and tying them in is the answer here (see here (#litres_trial_promo)). Large shrubs may have sprawled across a lawn and need removing or cutting back, too, and large trees could have their lower branches removed to allow more light and air into the garden; this is one job for a qualified expert.
Hard landscaping: As hard landscaping is expensive, it’s worth looking at any existing paving to see if it could be retained. Old paving slabs may be pressure washed to make them look like new again, repointing can make a great difference, too. Paved areas could also have their shape changed by removing some slabs (for instance, taking out the corner slabs from a square or rectangular shape), perhaps replacing them with plants. Scrape away old, dirty gravel and replace it with new. If you have a large expanse of gravel or chippings, try planting evergreen shrubs or grasses to break up the expanse.
Old fences: Old fences can sometimes be repaired, saving further expense, although old fence panels are best replaced. Fence panels are often made from poor quality, thin timber strips and just don’t last that long. Carefully remove them leaving the posts, which, if still stable, can carry a new closeboard style fence. Closeboard, or featheredge fencing, outlasts fence panels by years and creates a fence that I find more attractive, more robust and secure, and much easier to maintain than panels. A closeboard fence is also easy and simple to construct even if you only have basic DIY skills (see here (#litres_trial_promo)).
If you have a border that contains some mature shrubs, they can be cut back and rejuvenated if you want to keep them. It wouldn’t take long to get these shrubs back into shape, giving a much more coherent feel to the whole aspect.
Developing your ideas
If you have a generous budget to spend, you may wish at this stage to consider employing some professional help and advice. A good garden designer will be able to plan your garden to fit your needs, and money spent on this initially may save you making an expensive mistake in the future. Try to get a recommendation for a good garden designer from a friend or neighbour. Word of mouth based on personal experience is so much more useful than simply picking a business card pinned to the garden centre noticeboard.
Costs can be minimized if you wish to engage the garden designer for an advisory visit only. But always be sure that you ask for an explanation of costs and that you know what to expect from any visit that may occur afterwards.
Choosing a garden style (#ulink_cfa24584-97ad-5831-a044-c68864831eff)
Just as your own home will have a style of interior decoration, so your garden should have a particular style too. The look of a garden is partly influenced by where you live and the range of plants that will flourish in your climate. In England, a cottage garden style is very popular, whereas in Northern Australia obviously a tropical garden is more appropriate – but that’s not to say you can’t create a ‘tropical’ garden in a temperate climate or achieve a cottage garden style in Australia.
Traditionally, houses and their gardens only used local materials, so gardens matched their houses and tended to sit comfortably within their locality. Nowadays, though, there are many strong influences both from other countries and from modern garden designers. At the same time, the range of plants that are available to buy has dramatically increased and construction materials have become more affordable and much more widely available.
Whatever style of garden appeals to you, decide whether you would like to have a complete garden in that style, or just a part of it. If you use the design principal of ‘rooms’ in your garden, you could choose to include a few different styles. A Mediterranean style area, for example, would need to be in the hottest, driest and sunniest part of your garden, while you could have a tropical-style border in a sheltered spot, close to a patio or decking area. A wild area would be best situated at the bottom of your garden, as far away from the house as possible.
Whatever your preference of garden style, like the inside of your house, the biggest influence on its character will be you. Be guided by the different approaches and design principles that are shown here and in other books and magazines, and don’t worry about making the odd mistake – even the most confident gardener does that.
Graham Lucas
Blue Aquilegia ‘Hensol Harebell’, double flowered buttercups (Ranunculus acris ‘Flore Pleno’) and the soft pink flowers of Pimpinella major ‘Rosea’ combine to evoke that romantic, cottage garden look.
Cottage garden
Even though modern gardens with shiny metal, glass and plastic have become features of many garden shows, the traditional cottage garden style is still very popular. It is certainly the most romantic, and also the most comfortable style to live with. The main element of this traditional style is its informal plantings, mixing together masses of perennials, especially spires of delphiniums, hollyhocks and verbascum together with annual flowers such as lavatera, sweet peas and marigolds and climbers like honeysuckle and jasmine and, of course, deliciously scented roses. Old clay pots and traditional garden furniture add to the charm of this style.
Tropical garden
Possibly the furthest away from the cottage garden is a tropical style garden. Even in a climate not especially associated with heat, a tropical style is surprisingly easy to achieve. However, it looks best in an urban situation and works very well with modern furniture and accessories. Tender plants such as bananas and cannas will require some extra care to overwinter them, but it is well worth the effort.
The big impact for the tropical style comes from dramatic foliage. Large-leaved plants such as fatsia and paulownia work well with more architectural plants such as palms, bamboos and New Zealand flax. For flowers, fuchsias work really well, especially Fuchsia magellanica.
Plants for a tropical-style garden
Abutilon × hybridum (flowering maple)
Arundinaria (bamboo)
Brugmansia × Candida (angel’s trumpet)
Canna (Indian shot plant)
Eriobotrya japonica (loquat)
Fatsia japonica (Japanese aralia)
Fuchsia magellanica
Paulownia tomentosa (Chinese foxglove tree)
Phormium (New Zealand flax)
Trachycarpus fortunei (Chusan palm)
Even in a cool climate, a summer planting of tender plants creates a tropical effect. A variegated brugmansia and purple-leaved cannas provide both attractive foliage and flowers – but they will need winter protection from frosts.
Mediterranean garden
Even if you don’t live in the Mediterranean, many plants suited to that environment are surprisingly easy to grow, which means it is quite possible to plant a Mediterranean-style garden – just as long as you have plenty of that essential ingredient, sunshine. Despite being sun-loving and tolerant of dry conditions, many Mediterranean plants are also frost hardy, although they do need a well-drained soil to keep their roots dry in winter. Terracotta pots work well as containers and plants such as olives and citrus trees add that authentic touch. Using grit as a mulch around plants also looks very effective. Look for plants with bright colours, which are evocative of the Mediterranean, and many plants from that region also have aromatic foliage.
Gravel also forms an excellent backdrop for a Mediterranean-style garden. The first gravel garden I ever saw was at Beth Chatto’s now legendary garden in Essex and I was quite overwhelmed. I could not believe how many beautiful plants were thriving in such seemingly inhospitable conditions. If you are thinking about converting a lawn into a gravel garden, you will first have to remove existing turf and eradicate perennial weeds. If you have a large area, hire a turf cutter to save time and your back. Turf weighs a ton! (Don’t waste any turf – once removed, pieces can be stacked upside down and covered with black polythene for 12 months. This will rot down and make a crumbly, even textured loam suitable as topsoil.)
The area will need digging over, and if the soil is not already sandy or gravely, you will need to add plenty of grit or gravel as well as some well-rotted organic matter. You may consider hiring a Rotovator for this equally back-breaking task, but any investment made now will bring great rewards to your garden for years to come. Remember that plants from the Mediterranean region need full sun and dry roots in winter. Also, they look much better if they are spaced further apart than most plants.
Plants for a Mediterranean-style garden
Cistus spp. (rock rose)
Cordyline australis (cabbage palm)
Cupressus sempervirens (Italian cypress)
Lavandula stoechas (lavender)
Olea europaea (olive)
Pelargonium spp.
Phlomis fruticosa (Jerusalem sage)
Rosmarinus (rosemary)
Santolina virens (cotton lavender)
Vitis vinifera (grape vine)
Excellent drainage and full sun is essential for these succulents. Aeonium arboreum, opuntia and aloe add that Mediterranean feel to any planting.
Formal garden
Choosing between a formal or informal style is like deciding whether to wear jeans and T-shirt or a tweed suit. Most of us like a bit of both, although not at the same time, which is why it is wise to choose a style appropriate to the occasion and stick with it. Of course, in many gardens there is the opportunity to try out several styles, but the smaller the space, the better it is to use just one.
Formal designs work really well in small spaces and can help them appear bigger than they actually are. Furthermore, the formal style can take on quite different characteristics. For example, a formal Japanese-style garden would focus more on glorifying nature and use more natural lines as well as asymmetry. Conversely, formal gardens in the West usually reflect man dominating his landscape by using symmetry, geometry and proportion with a greater emphasis on hard landscaping details, and it is these things that essentially characterize the formal style. The use of focal points such as pots, sculptures or topiary is also associated with a formal setting.
The use of symmetry and focal points creates a strong feeling of formality in this garden, even though the planting style in the rest of the area is more relaxed and flowing.
Wild garden
Many people are now increasingly aware of wildlife and wish to attract birds, bees and butterflies into their gardens (see here (#litres_trial_promo)). Whenever you create a garden area they will all come, but to attract the greatest variety of wildlife, think of adopting a wild garden style, possibly just in one area, rather than for your whole garden.
If you have the space, grass that is left unmown is a wonderful feature. Mow a pathway through the long grass, and then you can explore the many wild flowers that appear in the long grass. These will, in turn, attract many butterflies, moths and other creatures. Plant native trees and shrubs, too, and also make use of cultivated varieties of native plants. Honeysuckles can be grown up any new or existing trees that you may have and they will attract moths, which will, in turn, attract bats.
Introducing water is possibly the single biggest thing you can do to attract more wildlife to your garden. An informal pond with plenty of native marginal plants (see here (#litres_trial_promo)) will quickly attract frogs, toads and many invertebrates. A wildlife garden, then, is more of a feature than a garden style, but it does have a particular look, and can still be a very colourful affair.
Grass left unmown allows wild flowers to grow. Here ox-eye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare) look delightful among the long grasses, and will encourage wildlife, too.
Contemporary garden
A favourite style for smaller urban spaces, where there may be no strong feeling coming from historic architecture or countryside views, a contemporary style usually relies on a degree of formality, often using strong geometric lines and plants with architectural qualities. Hard landscaping materials are usually sleek and modern, with stainless steel, glass, plastic and industrial metalwork being popular. A clean, uncluttered look is essential for creating a contemporary style of garden; smooth rendered walls are more effective than brick or stone; and because foliage often works better than flowers in this type of setting, masonry can be painted to be the main source of colour in the garden. Containers and furniture must also reflect the fashion of the garden. When selecting plants choose simple blocks or lines of single varieties; grasses, bamboos and evergreen shrubs work especially well with modern materials.
Plants for a contemporary garden
Buxus sempervirens (common box) clipped into geometric shapes
Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ (feather reed grass)
Carex buchananii (leatherleaf sedge)
Equisetum ramosissimum var. japonicum
Euphorbia mellifera (honey spurge)
Fatsia japonica (Japanese aralia)
Festuca glauca (blue fescue)
Miscanthus sinensis
Phyllostachys nigra (black bamboo)
