This garden in Oxford needed a secluded patio area and shrub borders.
Chelsea Flower Show 2015
There was a vibrancy at RHS Chelsea Flower Show this year with is dazzling array of colours in every garden. The Homebase garden had the Geum as it’s hero, Totally Tangerine and Lady Marmalade brightened up a day threatening rain.
The Sentabale garden is a delight with it’s lush planting, and pathways that lead you to the little door that will give hope to so many in Lesotho when they step through the door of their building. If you look closely the poppy from Lesotho did come out too, a lovely little orange.
The Telegraph gardens blocks of colour looked so simple, just three plants you think when you look in a block and then you see more and more plants in the same block.
The Laurent-Perrier Chatsworth Garden was beautiful, it is true most of us couldn’t have it in our garden but it just looked right in that corner of Chelsea, surely it was permanent. Iris x robusta Dark Aura was striking with it’s lovely dark stem and a lovely white flower that sprung from the garden was Paradisea lusitanica
The Lysimachia atropurpurea’Beaujolais’ appeared on a number of gardens, the M&G garden has a lovely Gypsophelia, elegans ‘Covent Garden.
The Dark Matter garden is inspiring and I walked away for the first time in my life knowing what Dark Matter was. Science with horticulture united in a seemingly simplistic way with the rusted steel rods and vibrant lime greens, oranges and yellows. Those steel rods are not just bent any old way though they are worked out to a mm of where the scientists say it should be. I didn’t know that any school could sign up to use the the observatory’s did you? Check out National Schools Observatory
The Artisan Garden were increadible their imagination in such a small place, the Breast Cancer Haven garden was stunning and I really did want to jump onto the woven oak leaf and relax under the canopy of leaves. The Old Forge for Motor Neurone Disease Assoc was stunning too and a major accomplishment for a young female designer
Today is the last day and as usual these masterpieces will be dismantled some to be built in permanent homes so if you haven’t managed to get there enjoy the BBC programmes and book for next year in December.
RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2015
This year, the designers battled their way through the wind and the rain ready for the opening day of the RHS Malvern Spring Festival which was fantastic. Whilst I felt the disappointment of not doing a garden design this year, it was lovely to have the time to admire the show and catch up with friends and colleagues.
The Villaggio garden deserves the best in show, the attention to detail was incredible, the water feature was carefully considered as in Andalusia the village fountain is fed from the mountain, so when it rains it gushes and the fountain is full but in the summer it is a little trickle. With the whitewashed walls, mature olive trees and red geraniums I was on holiday.
The Floral Marquees was bustling and I couldn’t resist taking home a fern from Bowdens, Matteucia struthiopteris Jumbo, it’s lime green colour and the anticipated height of 5-8ft. The collection of plants all gathered in one area is the equivalent of a sweet shop treat for children for me, a complete delight. The skill these nursery men have producing top quality plants for the show is astounding.
I also walked out with armfuls of Clematis from the 3 Shires Garden Centre, great quality and great prices and if you need supports you can find these too.
Of course there is not only the plants but the lectures, Raymond Blanc was his usual enthusiastic self and an inspiration to us all advising us to go for taste not looks with apples, Snow White chose the red shiny apple and look what happened to her! Ok well yes she did get the handsome prince in the end but that is not the point.
This year was a treat.
Creating a Country Garden in Oxfordshire for Family and Friends
Creating a Country Garden in Oxfordshire for family and friends from a field to a garden. Garden Design and Landscaping
Winter Colour
Colour in the Garden
The Hellebores are great little flowers that are often hidden by their leaves and their drooping flowers. Look underneath and you find this wonderful flower from the white Christmas Rose Helleborus niger to the deep dark Helleborus x hybridus ‘Blue Lady’. The Christmas Rose flowers around Christmas time and then you can have flowers right through to March/April.
These plants are easy to look after and grow well in shady conditions. Ideally plant the paler flowers in the shadier spots to light up the darker corners. The darker flowers need to be seen and they won’t be stuck in a shady corner, so semi shade for them.
Another great little winter plant is the Cyclamen hederifolium, these hardy plants make lovely swathes of colour. If you plant them in semi-shade in a humus rich location that will not dry out in the summer they will thrive. I tend to plant mine underneath Cornus or Hydrangeas where they will get the shade in the summer to protect them.
If you’re wanting something a little more blousy and in your face the Bergenia cordifolia or Elephants Ears. This plant has wavy leaves that are about 30cms long with stems of 60cms with sprays of pink flowers. They are again an easy plant to grow and unlike the two above enjoy sunshine or semi shade. There are many varities, if you prefer white flowers Bergenia ‘Bressingham White‘ or purple leaves try B. cordifolia ‘Purpurea
Or a Bergenia that many plantsmen rate is the one raised by Eric Smith of ‘The Plantsmen’.
“Undoubtedly the best for winter effect; large, rounded, crinkled leaves have polished bronze-tinted surfaces while backs, caught in low sunlight, glow rich carmine-red. 46 cm.” BethChatto.co.uk
Lighting your garden
Lighting your Garden
If you’re thinking of lighting your garden consider two things firstly there is the health and safety issue; can you actually get down steps or along your path and to a front door? Can you insert the keys in the lock without cursing that you can’t see a thing? Do you need lights for security reasons?
Once you’ve considered the functional aspects there is the aesthetics of lights. At this time of year lighting can really bring a little warmth and emphasises st ructure from lighting the path to focusing on key features. So whilst you may not want to sit out and enjoy your garden in mid winter you can still admire aspects of it and then in the summer you get to sit out and enjoy it.
Up-lighting trees is a beautiful feature, emphasizing the shape and texture in the winter where their branches reach into the darkness and in the summer evening it highlights the leaves gently dancing in the breeze. If you want to see a fantastic display of illuminated trees prior to Christmas visit Westonbirt Arboretum if you live near by.
Spot lighting some small shubs such as Cornus with it’s bold red or yellow stems adds some colour to the garden or focusing on statues where you can either throw light on the item or place the lighting behind it giving intrigue.
Lighting can give a magical element to the garden and enable you to focus on a particular object, in one garden we’ve used LED lights behind a water feature enabling it to float along the patio in the evening, where in the daylight it is a bold stone trough.
So now is the time to have a look at your garden, what would you like to see illuminated at this time of year? If you were looking out of your window what would you like to see?
Statues in Garden Design
Statues in Garden Design
I first really started admiring garden statues at Cothay Manor where a magnificent stag lords over the wildflower meadow. Statues in Garden design can focus the eye, enlighten a dull corner and enhance a garden.
David Harber and his team demonstrated their skill at designing and positioning statues at their show at Eaton Square where the Torus shone out in the simple design of lawn and trees adding a harmony where the shadows of the trees were brought down to our eye level. The Chalice pool, with it’s slow rotating water was soothing in the courtyard area. At the end of a hot day, dangling your fingers in felt refreshing and relaxing.
The bronze Quill was a really cleaver, illuminating the garden from it’s rather dark corner. I watched a number of people go up to look for the lighting but whilst it was gleaming in the evening light there was no electricity. The Obelisk was an absolute treat as it was placed in the shady area and was so cleverly situated as at times it was almost lost. It brought light and joy to a dark area.
ROSY and Victory Garden at RHS Malvern Spring Festival
The ROSY and Victory Garden inspired by Siegfried Sassoon’s poem Victory is awarded silver at RHS Malvern Spring Festival
David Harbers stainless steel Tourus is a key feature to the Garden
David Harber’s Torus at Malvern
David Harber‘s Torus has been a beautiful piece of garden art in the ROSY and Victory Garden. The polished stainless steel Torus has brought additional life to the garden mirroring the garden beautifully. When the weather shines the fluffy white clouds are picked up in it, even in the rain the Torus has subtly reflected the garden with little pearl shaped raindrops clinging to the art adding an additional feature.
Thank you David Harber for lending me this at Malvern.
Rosy and Victory Garden
12 Hours to Go before the Malvern Show officially opens. The excitement and focus of building a Show Garden is over for this year. We all shared the excitement of having had the judges reviewing our gardens today. So we wait to hear what the judges think of the ROSY and Victory garden, there is the anxiety, my peonies and foxgloves hadn’t flowered, but the Geraniums are the Aquelegia have what will the judges think.
So whilst the designers and amazing teams collapse in a heap and wait the Three Counties Show Ground takes on a different buzz there is a hive of activity as trade stands arrive from bulbs to vintage lawn mowers
This is a slightly surreal time as we have no work to do but are waiting for the next phase of the show to begin so I’m going to enjoy the floral marquee while I can.
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- Next Page »