As the latest addition to the GreenArt Care and Development team, Jenny has been reflecting on what she’s seeing as she tours the county with her trusty trowel.
Well, we’re already six months in to our gardening year here at Green Art, which seems a perfect time to reflect a few of the current gardening trends.
2018 was heralded to be the year that purple reigned in planting schemes and you can see this in George’s beautifully simple scheme which has just been completed in Aston Tirrold. Allium Purple Sensation set the tone at the end of May while Lavendula Hidcote, Delphinium Black Knight and Campanula Sarastro have been in full swing throughout June. Elegant Verbena Bonariensis and low growing Geranium Brookside will continue the purple theme in the next few months and all set against accents of white and lime green from two blousy Hydrangeas, the taller Annabelle and lower Schneeball, and spires of simple white flowers of Verbascum phoeniceum album.
At a more established garden that we care for near Nettlebed, Napeta (known more familiarly as Cat Mint) adds a billowing lavender accent to a formal buxus hedge, complemented by low-growing purple geraniums amid the standard roses in the adjacent formal beds. Simple but very effective.
And if the recent RHS Chelsea Flower Show is anything to go by, we are seeing a resurgence of classic cottage garden planting, with the ever present and proud-standing Lupin – a great addition to any bee-friendly scheme.
If you have Lupins in your garden, don’t be tempted to hard prune after flowering as they can take months to recover from this. Instead, deadhead as the flowers fade, rather than letting the plant put all it’s energy into producing lots of seeds.
Outdoor living is also on trend this year, as we make the most of dining alfresco. If you enjoy cooking and entertaining outside, why not have your own outdoor kitchen and pizza oven? If you don’t feel up to building it yourself, give us a call.
And, as Monty Don would say, here’s a few things to do in the garden this weekend…
- Prune early flowering shrubs: now’s the time to prune shrubs that flower in winter, spring and early summer to improve flowering and encourage healthy growth.
- Stake floppy plants: day lilies and delphiniums are a case in point, as they tend to bend over and lie on beds, paths and lawns. You can stake individual stems with canes or you can put a plant support in place which should save multiple stakes later on.
- Consider water usage, especially in drought prone areas. Have you considered a rainwater harvest system to sustain your summer watering? This can be as simple as adding a water butt to your garden which catches run off from a shed or roof guttering. You could also consider recycling your brown water. Rather than throwing out bath and dish water, fill up those watering cans and recycle it in the garden.
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We at GreenArt can provide help at any level
From planning a wildlife garden, building hides, constructing ponds and streams, creating paths and planting trees and shrubs.