Heaven and wildlife

Low-maintenance gardens can be
surprisingly wildlife-friendly. Many
easy-care plants attract bees and
butterflies, and shrubs and trees with
ornamental fruits offer a feast for birds.
Pictures clockwise from top left
Watering hole Providing a safe vantage point to drink
and bathe, a birdbath can become a hive of activity for
birds; site conveniently, as you’ll need to top it off regularly.
To avoid problems with cats, plant around the base with
low ground cover. Here, blue fescues (Festuca), houseleeks
(Sempervivum), and sedums are used. A shallow-sided
pebble pool would also attract amphibians and dragonflies.
Carefree meadow One way to reduce the need for
regular mowing in a large garden, while increasing wildlife
potential, is to convert sections of formal lawn into
wildflower meadows. On poor, sandy soil, you can
establish a meadow using wildflower plugs and bulbs
suitable for naturalizing. More reliable results are achieved
by removing sod with a sod-cutting machine and then
re-sowing with a perennial wildflower mix.

Insect attractors Beneficial hoverflies seek out
single-flowered annuals, such as Eschscholzia and
Limnanthes, and bees love blue flowers like this California
bluebell (Phacelia campanularia). Verbena bonariensis and
Buddleja davidii are magnets for bees and butterflies. For
the first insects of the season, plant sunny gravel or raised
beds with spring alpines—alyssum, arabis, aubrieta,
heathers, grape hyacinth (Muscari), and crocus.
Bird cover Large evergreen and deciduous shrubs, dense
hedges, and trees are vital for birds. They not only need
safe nesting and nighttime roosting sites, but also places
to shelter during bad weather and to escape airborne
predators. Without cover nearby, birds are nervous about
entering a garden, even one with feeders.
Berry banquet Provide a wide range of fruiting and
berrying plants, with some ripening in late summer and
others ready for harvest well into winter. This long-lasting
buffet will cater to local birds as well as visiting migrants.
Low ground-cover plants such as Cotoneaster salicifolius
‘Gnom’ (illustrated), wall shrubs like pyracantha, roses
with large colorful hips, and small ornamental trees, such

as rowans (Sorbus) and crab apples (Malus), are ideal.

Choosing planting style

When planting your
garden, if you decide
to follow a particular
style, first ensure that
it is practical and fits
your lifestyle.
What do you want?

Find inspiration for your yard
by visiting other gardens, and
looking at books, magazines,
and television shows. If you long
for a tropical garden with exotic
plants, such as palms and other
architectural specimens, you
can achieve it with the use of
containers on a sun-drenched
terrace, even in cold regions.
What do you need?

If entertaining outdoors is
important to you, a large patio
with a dining/barbecue area will
be useful, while a lawn is a good
idea if children are likely to play
in the yard in summer. Your
lifestyle may dictate that you
have a low-maintenance garden
with plants that are easy to
care for but look good all year.
Consider also how much
privacy you need.
Examine the visual appeal of your
chosen scheme. Will you include
plants with impact to create
impressive planting schemes?
Or would you prefer a themed
garden with an exotic feel, or
simply an oasis of tranquillity?
When selecting plants, make sure
you choose those that will suit the
style of garden you have in mind

Winter beds and borders

Gardens are often neglected in winter
once most showy flowers have faded,
but with the right plants, they can still
be enchanting places at this time of
year. Plants with winter interest often
have special, rather subtle qualities,
such as sweetly scented flowers,
attractive stems, foliage, seedheads,
berries, or structural shapes.
Pictures clockwise from top left
Winter flowers Hellebores, such as Helleborus x
hybridus, are among the best winter-blooming plants.
Flowering from midwinter to mid-spring, these clumpforming
evergreen perennials are easily grown in light
shade in any good soil, and form good ground cover
when planted in drifts. Other perennials with winter
interest worth seeking out include mauve-flowered Iris
unguicularis and Arum italicum ‘Marmoratum’, with its
white-veined leaves.

Transient beauty Frost and snow add an element
of short-lived beauty to the garden in winter, often
transforming it overnight. A light covering of snow
or a hard frost can enhance structures, highlighting
architectural features and plants and briefly changing
the whole feel of a garden.
Scented highlights Mahonias are among the finest
evergreen shrubs for winter, with their spiny foliage and
sweetly scented yellow blooms, followed by blue-tinged
berries. They are also useful for their architectural form,
which makes them an attractive backdrop for other
plants such as Euonymus, with its colorful fruit.
Graceful grasses The seedheads of some grasses will
survive well into winter, providing a touch of unexpected
grace to plantings, especially when dusted with frost.
Translucent, they allow views through to plants behind,
such as the fruit-laden branches of a crabapple (Malus).
Scented shrubs Some shrubs flower in winter, such as
witch hazel (Hamamelis) with its orange, yellow, or red
spiderlike blooms. Other shrubs worth considering for
their delicious scent include the honeysuckle Lonicera x
purpusii and Chimonanthus praecox

Summer beds and borders

Summer is the season of unrestrained
color, when most beds and borders are
at their best. If well planted, the garden
should provide a succession of flowers
that lasts for months on end.
Pictures clockwise from top left
Mixing colors Planting a mix of herbaceous perennials
and annuals is a quick and easy way to provide striking
contrasts. Color-themed plantings that use a restricted
color palette are effective at creating different moods.
Contrasting colors evoke drama, while those that blend
together produce a more relaxed feel.

Continuous color Many perennials run out of steam as
the summer progresses, especially in times of drought or
extreme heat. Others, though, can be relied on to flower
well into fall, especially those that are natives of warmer
climates, such as Crocosmia and Rudbeckia.
Calming foliage Without some order, too many bright
flowers can become rather overpowering, especially in
a small space. The mitigating effect of foliage can help
create a calmer effect, softening bright colors. Silvery
leaves, such as those of Artemisia, used with whites,
creams, and pale pinks produce a cool feel; deep green
foliage contrasts well with brightly colored flowers.
Summer bulbs Summer-flowering bulbs, such as lilies,
gladioli, and Galtonia, are often overlooked but, planted
directly into borders or put in pots and plunged into the
ground, they pack a powerful punch of color.

Spring beds and borders

No season is more eagerly
anticipated than spring. After the
dark, cold days of winter, the garden
bursts into life with verdant growth
and colorful flowers, marking the start
of a new gardening year. In late spring,
many gardens look their freshest,
resplendent with the soft, glowing
greens of young foliage.
Pictures clockwise from left
Colorful climbers Walls and fences can be clothed
with a range of different climbers that will flower in
spring. Wisteria, grown for its waterfalls of scented
purple or white flowers, is perhaps the best known.
It is, however, a large plant and needs restrictive
pruning to keep it manageable. Alternatives include
Clematis montana in white or pink, and Akebia quinata
with purple blooms, although these climbers are also
potentially large. More suited to a small garden are
Clematis alpina, C. macropetala, and the early
honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum ‘Belgica’ with its
deliciously scented flowers.

Vibrant bulbs and early perennials In beds and
borders, herbaceous plants push through the soil,
growing quickly in the damp, mild conditions. Many
will flower early, especially those that enjoy woodland
conditions, such as Pulmonaria, Primula, Dicentra,
Doronicum, Epimedium, and Anemone. Some of these
perennials can be grown successfully with spring bulbs,
such as tulips and daffodils, injecting extra interest into
plantings and helping to mask yellowing bulb foliage as
the season progresses.
Carpets of spring flowers In less formal areas of the
garden, where a more naturalistic display is desired, it
is possible to plant and even naturalize some bulbs in
grass. Snowdrops (Galanthus) and crocuses that flower
in early spring can be interplanted with fritillaries, tulips,
daffodils (Narcissus), and Camassia to create a display
that will last until early summer. Areas under mature
trees are ideal for this kind of treatment, but avoid
mowing the grass until the bulb foliage has died away.

Themed planting scheme

Some of the most successful gardens
are developed around a particular
theme or idea that helps to bind the
planting and design together. Selecting
plants that fit the overall concept helps
evoke the correct spirit and feel, which,
in turn, lends a touch of authenticity
to the garden.
Pictures clockwise from top left
Lush and subtropical There are many hardy and
borderline hardy plants that can be used to create a
subtropical-style garden. Generally, the lush feel is
provided by foliage plants. Large specimens of hardy
Trachycarpus palms, bamboos, phormiums, and tree ferns
will provide structure; in summer, containers can be filled
with tender plants such as begonias, cannas, Lantana,
and gingers (Hedychium), which produce exotic flowers.
Classic Italian Italianate gardens tend to be rather
formal, with plenty of topiary and clipped evergreens,
such as boxwood (Buxus). The layout is usually simple
and the planting restrained, limited to a few favorites,
such as acanthus, agapanthus, olives, slender conifers,
jasmine, and herbs. Classical statuary plays an important
role, often terminating a vista, and specimen plants in
containers may feature, perhaps used along a terrace to
introduce a sense of repetition and rhythm to the garden.

Meadow planting Informal and naturalistic, meadow
planting uses a limited palette of different plants mixed
randomly together in large groups. These schemes work
well in large, open expanses and tend to be short-lived—
many of the plants used are annuals, such as poppies
(Papaver) and cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus). However,
perennials can also feature, and the planting style can be
scaled down to more modest-sized borders.
Moroccan oasis Water is a vital element for a Moroccan
theme, and a wall fountain, perhaps with a blue-tiled
surround, would make an ideal feature. Most of the
plantings should be in pots—pelargoniums, date palms,
agaves, and other succulents are suitable choices—but
avoid having too many plants. A few large foliage plants
in darker corners, and climbers, such as Trachelospermum,
scrambling up the walls would also fit in very well.