Just a few lines on my visit to this year’s show. There were a lot of large rocks and giant size pebbles at the show this year. Another trend seems to be more colourful plantings than the rather restrained green of last year. The best in show was the Telegraph Garden designed by Ulf Nordfjell and it was really a lovely thing to behold:

This modern small garden (’Nature Ascending’) also caught my eye:

One of the Courtyard gardens ‘Pottering in North Cumbria’ was one that I’d like to take home for the great plant selection and simple but effective design.

If you have been thinking about having your garden redesigned, or perhaps you want to sell your house and are looking for ways to add value to it, now is the best time to talk to a garden designer about the project.

Like most design projects the dialogue between designer and client to find the right solution can take time. There are practical considerations like booking builders and contractors to actually do the works when the design is finalised. Thinking about garden design in the late winter means that all the paper-based work can be done, contactors found and booked, and decisions made in time for the actual work to begin before the summer months. It is also easier to conduct building works when there isn’t snow and ice around to make concrete and brickwork difficult to do.

If you would like to talk about redesigning your garden, or you would like more information about the design process, Please contact me on 07956 906053 or email charlotte AT creategardendesign DOT co DOT uk and I will be happy to discuss it with you.

The weather has put a stop to gardening!

It can be a useful aid that shows you where the blank areas of your garden are and allows you to plan where you want to fill gaps in the coming spring.

It’s always good to have something to look at through these short and dark days, here are just a few of the things that I grow that are still going strong in December.

Stipa tenuissima - wispy looking grass that is getting more golden as winter comes on and moves gracefully in the wind. It has a pleasing fountain shape too.

Penstemon - I grow two different types purple flowering ‘Garnet’ and red ‘Maurice Gibb’ and they are still in flower with buds still to come. These plants really seem to keep going through all the cold and wet weather.

Rosa ‘Charlotte’ and ‘William Morris’  - These are ‘English’ Roses from David Austin and not only are there still flowers on both of them but they seemed to be growing until late in November.

Hellebores - I have some hybrid hellebores that were from a plant fair and so have no names but they are covered in buds and bright green foliage. I can’t wait for the flowers to come and cheer up the shady area where I planted them.

Box - evergreen box is often listed as a winter plant and the ability to shape it by clipping means that the shapes take on more importance in the garden as other plants die off for the winter.

Sage - evergreen sage is still looking good in my back garden and it looks even better with frost all over the grey-green leaves. Handy for soups too.

There is disagreement between gardeners between growing food crops in open ground or using a series of defined beds with paths in-between. I opted for the beds and permanent paths. I find it is easier for me to work out my crop rotation with a series of defined beds and woodchip paths make keeping my boots clean in winter wet easier.

I started some work on Saturday morning at the plot and remembered why the beds were such a good idea, needed to put in my onion sets I had a quick look at last years rotation plan and decided that they could go in the bed that held Cauliflowers previously. It just needed a loosen with a fork, raking, and then planting.

Working on the bed from the path also meant my boots stayed mostly mud-free.

Next on the planting list, garlic cloves.

I redesigned my front garden back at the start of 2008 and removed almost all the old shrubs and replaced them with a prairie inspired scheme of grasses, perennials and box plants. The garden did look a bit bare when I first planted it up but I was convinced it wouldn’t take long to see the plants begin to grow and fill out.

Here is my first update photo that shows how not everything you plant does what you expect:

The Salvia patens that I used at the front should clearly have gone further back but it has been flowering since late July and proved to be much tougher and longer-lasteing than I expected. The Stipa tenuissima grasses are a delight and sway about in even light breezes, they look really nice next to the pink Echinacea (of which I should clearly have bought a few more!)

There may be a few gaps in winter as the Epimediums have not grown very quickly, I suspect that something may be eating them and I must treat them for Vine Weevils.

It has looked really good all summer long and now I shall take stock, buy a few extra plants and have a tidy up before winter to make sure that it looks even better in 2009.

I can make a planting plan for you too, call me on 07956 906053. I qualified with a Foundation Degree in Garden Design from Sparsholt college in 2007.

It may sound strange, but September is often considered the start of the gardening year because it is when the planning for next year really begins. Seed catalogues are sent out at this time and clearing of spent summer vegetables starts as well as digging new beds and improving soil once autumn brings rain. (Not that this summer has exactly been without rain!)

It is a great time to consider what there is in your garden that you like, or don’t like and make plans for the next 12 months. Looking at the seed catalogues can help you decide what you would like to try growing next year.

It’s also a good time for planting anything that has been left over from spring including trees and shrubs. Dig a bigger hole than the pot they are in to give them a really good start in aerated soil and feed them with a slow release fertiliser like fish, blood and bone.

From October until March the bare-root trees and shrubs will be sent out from nurseries. If you have ordered any of these prepare the soil now so that when they arrive you can either plant them straight away (if the soil isn’t frozen or saturated) or heel them in until you can put them in their final places.

Even if you have a very small garden composed of no more than a few shrubs and some lawn, the chances are that it already provides a home to wildlife. Although we are most likely to notice larger creatures like birds and mammals it is the insects and small bugs that form the basis of their diet and encouraging these ‘mini-beasts’ into your garden will eventually result in larger creatures visiting.

A compost heap is always a good way to get really small insects into the garden as they help decompose the materials in the heap. If you have space for a heap top it up with green plant material mixed with woody prunings or even cardboard (torn up). The cardboard will help the green bits to decompose without getting slimy and is especially good if you want to compost your grass cuttings.

Flowering shrubs are good for providing nectar for insects and if you have space for several types to spread their flowers across the seasons you can ensure there is food for insects almost all year. Some of these insects (Hoverflies in particular) will predate on common garden pests like greenfly as well as attracting bird predators.

Hanging up a bird feeder could make all the difference to local birds such as sparrows and you will find larger birds like blackbirds will clear up the seed that falls to the ground as well as helping to keep slugs and snails under control. Put the bird feeder away from walls and places where cats could hide, if you can put it in a tree it will provide cover for shy birds to use the feeder.

If you would like your own wildlife-friendly garden call Create Garden Design to arrange a free consultation the numbers are at the top of the page.

I have been staring out of the window onto my garden a lot in the last few days (in-between writing leaflets and graphic design jobs, and doing the ironing!) And it occurred to me that at the moment my own garden is at the peak of what it does throughout the year. There are plenty of flowers, colours, insects and birds making the most of it and the whole thing just looks full to bursting.

It can’t, won’t, last. By December there will be gaps and the remains of all those herbaceous bits will be brown and dried.

So, later today I’m ging to get out there and take some photos so that, come December, when I want to plan for next year I’ll be able to see that bits that worked, where there needs to be change and if I can cram in some evergreen bits in-between the herbaceous stuff for winter interest.

I’ll also take an overhead photo by looking out of an upstairs window so that I can draw over the top on some tracing paper if I want to make bigger plans.

If you would like a garden designed to suit your lifestyle please contact me to arrange a FREE initial meeting.

I walk to the local shop past some hedges planted exclusively of Rosa rugosa and they are always humming with bees. From May and June these plants produce wonderful blooms in magenta or white that have delicate petals and golden stamens inside. The flowers smell lovely too but If you want to take a sniff you may find yourself in competition with the insects…they would certainly make a good addition to a wildlife garden.

They could make a good security hedge too due to their spiny stems that grow over a metre in height. The ones near me appear to be pruned using a hedge trimmer and they seem to grow back happily so I assume that they are not difficult to maintain.

Although they are deciduous and can look rather bare and spiky over winter they also have red fruits in autumn, providing one last bit of interest before they lose their leaves.