I am hoping that this will be my first blog post of many! This one (and the next) are dedicated to planting - and more specifically native planting and its place in future trends in garden design.
The world over innovative designers have used their native plants in their designs to produce stunning works - Roberto Burle-Marx in Brazil, Ted Smyth in New Zealand or Steve Martino in Arizona for example. Britain has however been a little different. The British are proud of their long history of gardening with plants from around the world (from Humphrey Repton, William Robinson, Gertrude Jekyll, Vita Sackville-West, Geoffrey Jellicoe and on to our modern designers) - and this means that an international plant palette has become common place in our gardens - they have naturalised in our consciousness.
There are however many fine native plants in the UK which can add to any garden and which hit the mark with regards to putting the right plant in the right place - this ensures that chances of success are maximised, and maintenance requirements are minimised. It also offers a sustainability that fits with many modern design concepts, especially if the plants are locally sourced.
Also, low maintenance has become a by-word - although one that is not always clearly understood by those who use it. Most people want a stunning garden but many also want no maintenance - something that is not prove possible to achieve (weeds will colonise in places even if you concrete over all of your soil)! But perhaps native plants can offer a way forwards.
That is not to say that non-native plants should not be used, this is not a native hegemony, merely that they need to be carefully selected where minimal care is required! (This may well form the basis of a future blog post.)
So what planting combinations are possible with native plants?
For me simplicity is the key.
The classic naturalistic spring planting is where single-species of bulbs grow through the grass of meadows or in areas of longer grass in lawns. Choice of plants is key and I would recommend any of the following, planted in large bold drifts with individual plants positioned by throwing the bulbs into place to ensure the finish look is suitable random.
- Daffodils (Narcissus poeticus or Narcissus pseudonarcissus)
- Snowflakes (Leucojum aestivum)
- Snake’s Head Fritillaries (Fritillaria meleagris - as long as the soil does not dry out)
- Tulips (Tulipa sylvestis)
- Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum nutans)
- Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis)
In the past I have also drawn inspiration from the hedgerows around me - watching the progression of white flowers bloom and fade as the year progressed along just a small country lane near to my home. These plants were however something different to the skillful artifice of the White Garden at Sissinghurst:
- Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis)
- Blackthorn (Prunus spinosus)
- Wood anenome (Anemone nemorosa)
- Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
- Holly (Ilex aquifolium)
- Cow Parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris)
- Elder (Sambucus nigra)
- Hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum)
- Ox Eye Daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare)
- Pignut (Conopodium majus).
All flowered and then faded but the rhythms and the repetition of nature were held together with that one colour. A selection of these plants can be used in a planting design - although Hogweed should be avoided as its sap can cause severe blisters.
In my next post I will detail more combinations of native plants and how these can be used - from forest gardens to naturalising perennials in grass....
matt haddon - garden designer based in East Yorkshire
Comments
Brilliant Matt, just brilliant.
Brilliant blog matt. Something that is close to my heart. I look after a couple of gardens which are semi wild and have numerous native plants in them. They are by far my favourite places to work in. I try to push native planting where i can but have found limited take up of the idea except in the larger gardens where some areas are native and the areas closer to the house are more formal with more non native planting. I find people with small gardens are reluctant to use native plants - they all want the exotic plants with maximum impact. Its a shame really.
Interesting, though not commercially viable, for Growers.
The few Trees and Shrubs listed are mostly viewed as "amenity" so are grown as such, either bare root, or stuffed in a pot if they cannot be sold in the bare root season. This is done, since demand is so low for these plants.
With the general public now able to source from a vast and varied plant pallete for their gardens, for a Landscaper to turn up to plant a garden, with an amenity selection and grade of plants, as opposed to what is commercially available from local Garden Centres could prove interesting?
We sell to Landscapers and Designers year round. With the exception of Crataegus, Prunus spinosus, and Ilex aquifolium, all for hedging, never been asked for the others, with around 500 quotes a year.
New trend, guess not. Way out, like someone wanting to plant an Australian garden in the UK, perhaps?
Native is an interesting call, 1,000 years ago, or 10,000 years ago?
The idea that Plant hunters sought plants from all around the world, to grow in our climate for the last few hundred years still inspires us, most Landscapers and Retail customers.
But then, if we all liked the same, and all gardens looked the same, it would get pretty boring.
Thanks for the comment.
"Native" as a concept will always prove contentious; I suppose I was looking for plants which have been been around for a long time and therefore fill an ecological niche.
For me the key to successful garden design is to adapt to the context of the position of the garden and the tastes of the client; I wanted to suggest that I have taken inspirational cues from nature (as a trend for the future), as opposed to designing a pastiche of a country lane - except where this would fit with the landscape being designed.
This is a 'trend' that will grow. More and more people are seeking plants that attract butterflies, birds etc. and if there is space, they will leave an area of 'wilderness' for the nettles. I have a few natives in my own garden and try to persuade people that they are equally attractive and much more useful/sustainable than their exotic counterparts. If a native isn't suitable, I choose something closely related or with similar characteristics. For example, elders have many cultivars with beautiful flowers and berries that are more suited to garden situations than the true native variety. Spindle makes an attractive shrub and I love having daisies, moss and many other species in my lawn/wildflower meadow. Sometimes though, the natives get out of hand and the attractive clump of nettles or thistle that looked OK for a while quickly takes over...my neighbours don't like my 'weeds' or my woolly, verdant garden style but I have far more birds and insects.