Gardening

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GROWTH IN GARDENING

Mike Burks, Managing Director, The Gardens Group

Over 3.5 million people took to gardening for the first time in 2020, according to industry statistics. Some of this would have been forced upon those who were at home because of the need to isolate, others will have been furloughed, whilst many will have been working from home. Although we have the vaccine being deployed at a rapid rate, it will be a number of weeks or months before normal patterns return and it will be interesting to see what these new gardeners do this year.

Some will discover delights of gardening that many of us have been appreciating for years. Others will, perhaps without knowing it, start new trends.

When speaking on gardening trends I always turn to see what Pantone have to say about colour trends. It’s not my world but I love the words used – an example is this winter’s predictions;

‘Winter 2020/2021 is a story of mindfulness as we see a stripping back of colour to the essentials,’ said Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute. ‘Prevailing in singular colour statements, our colour story for Winter 2020/2021 conveys a message of

strength and purposefulness with a sense of optimism.’

To me that sounds like purple…but I’m not sure…

The COVID pandemic has had other impacts on us and gardening has clearly played a huge role in keeping people at home and busy, helping with mental and physical health. This will certainly be a continuing trend and research shows that contact with well-maintained garden soil, teeming with micro-organisms, can trigger the release of serotonin in the brain. This is a natural anti-depressant, which also strengthens the immune system.

Gardening regularly is proven to be good in many other ways too, including helping reduce stress and burn calories, as well as releasing endorphins – ‘the happy hormones’ – that relax us and make us feel content. There have even been studies to suggest it can help reduce the risk of dementia.

Getting outdoors and being close to nature in the garden is also great for mindfulness. In our restaurants and farm shop, we are witnessing the growing trend for more vegetarian and vegan-based dishes too, as the nation nourishes both the body and soul.

Every year the weather impacts on the traditional gardening calendar and with the changing climate it has even more of an impact. The magnolia in our garden flowered twice last year and was budding up for a third go before the temperatures dropped in December. This will be due to significant temperature fluctuations.

The great news about more people gardening is that there will be many more who are aware that the climate is doing strange things and will then be keen to do something about it.

However, we shouldn’t combat this unpredictable climate with a knee-jerk reaction. Dramatically redesigning gardens to cope with this weather is not sensible; removing lawns ruins natural drainage, leading to flooding elsewhere.

Good gardening techniques, which tend to be environmentally-friendly, will overcome many of the gardening problems we’ll face.

Water is an extremely valuable resource for gardening and can become expensive. There are obvious things that can be done to minimise the costs, such as collecting rain from our roofs using water butts. Yet the most effective alternative would be the way we look after the soil. This means adding well-rotted plant material or compost to keep the soil environment healthy and structurally-sound.

This will improve sandy, silty or clay soils. It also will allow for the retention of moisture in dry conditions and, in very wet weather, it will allow the movement of water away from the root zone. This in turn will lead to healthier plants and these are all things we need to be educating our customers on going forward.

Homemade compost can be dug into the soil or used as a mulch on the surface where it is also useful in keeping weeds down, conserving moisture and slowly being incorporated into the soil through natural processes as it breaks down, further improving soil structure. It also acts as an excellent buffer in extreme weather as both a frost protector and to reduce the battering that the soil takes from heavy rain.

One of the few gardening interests not affected by the vagaries of the weather is houseplants. They are proving increasingly popular with younger age groups, who want easy-care gardening solutions combined with a healthy edge. That and the tendency for new homes having small or non-existent gardens and the increasing number of rented houses or flats has also boosted this trend.

Research has shown houseplants can help destress us and detox our homes and they can also filter out chemicals from the atmosphere. They also help improve air quality, relax and revive you mentally and physically, and can help reduce dust, which saves on the housework. The right indoor plants could reduce susceptibility to stress, allergies, asthma, fatigue, headaches and respiratory congestion.

But we must let Pantone have the last word because their prediction for summer 2021 is delightful and includes: ‘Summer Bouquet - Pale hazy petals combine with exotic pinks and a herbal green to create a fresh summer palette that celebrates the positivity and happiness of colours from nature.’

Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it!

"Good gardening techniques, which tend to be environmentallyfriendly, will overcome many of the gardening problems we’ll face."

PLANTING BY DESIGN

Bev Jones, Garden Designer, Co. of Landscapers

For many people, the most exciting and interesting part of a garden lies in the plants and their ability to bring colour, create an overall mood or bring a certain ambience to their garden. However, choosing the right plants to suit your plot and the effect you want to create can also be one of the most challenging and difficult aspects of creating a garden. With careful thought and planning a harmonious and pleasing effect can be achieved, where the plants soften and contrast with the harsher hard landscaping elements, bringing the whole space together. It is usually the planting that makes the biggest impact and is remembered the most.

A successful planting scheme will be well-thought out and careful consideration given to a whole range of different requirements. Each plant has its own characteristics, situation and soil preferences. There is also the height of each plant to consider, the colour of flowers and foliage, fragrance, leaf texture and shape, attractiveness to wildlife, the overall shape of the plant, what the plant will look like throughout the year, and, of course, the relationship between each individual plant and others in the scheme. In addition, plants may be required to fulfil certain functional roles within the garden; providing screening, shade, structure, protection from wind, a focal point or enclosing parts of the garden. The plants should also unite the garden with the landscape beyond, whether in an urban or rural setting.

Of course, there are also many different styles of garden and the planting has to reflect the overall style or feel. Increasingly popular are modern gardens where the garden is seen as an extension of the house or ‘outdoor room’, and the corresponding planting may be restricted to a certain colour palette and planted in blocks with repeated patterns of the same plants. Formal gardens will include strict geometric shapes

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and symmetry while informal gardens flow with soft planting, reflecting a more natural growing style. Then there are themed planting schemes like Japanese, Mediterranean or coastal gardens for example.

So where to start when thinking about what plants to use in your garden? The first consideration will always be what plants you need and where - to create the structure of the garden. This will include perhaps hedging to enclose some areas, or to provide noise or wind reduction, trees used to screen unsightly areas beyond the garden boundaries and trees or large shrubs to provide height and focal points. Scale and proportion are extremely important to achieve a sense of harmony in a garden - if you have a small garden you will not want to plant a large, vigorously growing tree or shrub - they may provide an ‘instant’ quick effect but will also create problems in the future with additional work to keep it within size and the neighbours happy!

The structure or the ‘bones’ of a garden are also provided by evergreen shrubs. These provide the framework and hold the overall design together in winter when the deciduous shrubs have lost their leaves and herbaceous perennials have died down. Structural plants can also emphasise the pattern or shape of your garden layout, directing movement through the garden and emphasising different features. There should be a good balance between evergreen and deciduous shrubs, such as one-third to two-thirds. Repetition of plants also helps to link one area to another throughout the garden and provide continuity.

Once the structural and key plants have been decided, the most enjoyable part is focusing on the decorative plants. These include shrubs and climbers chosen for an attractive outline, beautiful flowers, foliage or berries, not forgetting the importance of contrasting shape and form, texture and colour. The decorative planting should give balance and contrast to the structural planting.

Herbaceous perennials are the mainstay of the decorative planting and look most effective planted in drifts, weaving in and out of the structural shrubs to hold the composition together and provide movement and colour. They vary enormously in shape, texture and colour, can be strikingly architectural or give a softer, calming feel. It is advisable not to use too many different types of plants which can make a scheme look restless or unbalanced. Unless of course, your aim is for a cottage garden look. Careful consideration should be given to the effect you want to achieve and also the flowering period of the plant - I always like to use plants that have lengthy or repeat flowering times in my planting schemes and try to use plants which always look good when not in flower. Grasses can also look stunning when planted in groups amongst flowering herbaceous perennials, especially when back-lit with low autumn sunlight and prolonging interest with their fluffy seed-heads, lasting well into winter.

One of the most rewarding but greatest challenges of designing with plants is to arrange combinations that create a successional display throughout the year. Seasonal changes can be dramatic but it is essential to choose plants that create interest throughout, whether it be with brightly coloured stems, beautiful evergreens or scented winter-flowering shrubs. Don’t forget to underplant with bulbs for additional spring interest!