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Put Plants to Work in Small Gardens
Grasses, ground cover and more keep small gardens big on visual interest
Houzz Contributor. I have been involved all my working life with design, garden design, horticulture and garden retailing. At present I work as a buyer for a large garden centre in the south west of England where I live in the idyllic Devon countryside. My passion for small garden design and the lifestyle it brings has lead me to write about it on my blog, www.yardz.typepad.co.uk for the last four years.
Houzz Contributor. I have been involved all my working life with design,... More »
When we talk about small gardens, what do we really mean? Against the gardens of Versailles or the English landscape gardens of the 18th century, all our gardens are small. Outdoor space is a precious commodity, especially when it is compact space yet has to serve many functions.
In urban areas, gardens are getting smaller as real estate becomes more valuble and homeowners have less time to maintain their outdoor spaces. No matter how minimalist or hardscape-driven small garden designs are, it is the plants that matter most.
Plantings in small gardens has to perform many tasks — providing year-round color and interest, establishing structure and softening hardscapes, providing movement and a connection to nature — all while keeping a low-maintenance profile.
Let's look at structure, movement and using ground cover for low maintenance in small gardens.
In urban areas, gardens are getting smaller as real estate becomes more valuble and homeowners have less time to maintain their outdoor spaces. No matter how minimalist or hardscape-driven small garden designs are, it is the plants that matter most.
Plantings in small gardens has to perform many tasks — providing year-round color and interest, establishing structure and softening hardscapes, providing movement and a connection to nature — all while keeping a low-maintenance profile.
Let's look at structure, movement and using ground cover for low maintenance in small gardens.
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| Create Garden Structure Structural drama. Plants need to work overtime in small gardens, perhaps providing more than just one benefit. Crocosmia 'Lucifer', zones 6-10, has fresh, green sword-shaped leaves that provide great architectual interest when contrasted against other plants. Its magnificent late summer flowers of burning paprika red provide much-needed drama in a limited space. Planting note: Crocosmia 'Lucifer' can be grown from corms planted in early spring. They form large clumps over time and need to be divided and reduced to prevent them from taking over. Crocosmia 'Lucifer' is possibly the best variety to grow, but others worth growing include Crocosmia 'Emberglow', a deep dark red, and Crocosmia 'Solfatare', which has yellow flowers. |
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Evergreen structure. Box (Buxus spp) are as popular as ever as a clipped plant to provide structure. At the 2012 Chelsea Flower Show, we saw just how much they are still a mainstay of many contemporary as well as traditional garden designs.
But for a change, try growing Privet Honeysuckle (Lonicera pileata), zones 6-9. This is normally grown as a ground cover with horizontal branches. It clips beautifully into compact shapes, making a very pretty early spring feature as its soft green young leaves appear among the older dark green leaves.
Planting note: Lonicera pileata is a shrubby honeysuckle and bears beautiful miniature, sweet-smelling honeysuckle flowers in early spring — so leave the first clipping till after it flowers.
Structure is vital in small garden planting. Strong clipped shapes such as spheres, cubes and pyaramids, especially in repetition, bind the planting design together.
But for a change, try growing Privet Honeysuckle (Lonicera pileata), zones 6-9. This is normally grown as a ground cover with horizontal branches. It clips beautifully into compact shapes, making a very pretty early spring feature as its soft green young leaves appear among the older dark green leaves.
Planting note: Lonicera pileata is a shrubby honeysuckle and bears beautiful miniature, sweet-smelling honeysuckle flowers in early spring — so leave the first clipping till after it flowers.
Structure is vital in small garden planting. Strong clipped shapes such as spheres, cubes and pyaramids, especially in repetition, bind the planting design together.
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Another great alternative to Box is a member of the holly family — Japanese Holly (Ilex crenata), zones 5-9. Ilex crenata is great as an evergreen in small gardens. It is slow growing and, left unclipped, has small, shiny black fruit in the autumn that contrasts so well against its tiny, glossy leaves.
My choice, though, is the golden variety Ilex crenata 'Golden Gem'. Leave it unclipped for a wonderful flat-topped golden sphere that provides wonderful color throughout the year — especially in winter and spring.
My choice, though, is the golden variety Ilex crenata 'Golden Gem'. Leave it unclipped for a wonderful flat-topped golden sphere that provides wonderful color throughout the year — especially in winter and spring.
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My third small-leaf evergreen choice is Lonicera nitida 'Baggesen's Gold', a favorite of landscapers that makes a great low hedge.
Another shrubby honeysuckle, it is less tidy in habit than Lonicera pileata, having outward-pointing branches composed of small ovate leaves. Lonicera nitida 'Baggesen's Gold', though, has golden yellow leaves through the summer that turn yellow-green in the autumn.
Another shrubby honeysuckle, it is less tidy in habit than Lonicera pileata, having outward-pointing branches composed of small ovate leaves. Lonicera nitida 'Baggesen's Gold', though, has golden yellow leaves through the summer that turn yellow-green in the autumn.
| Accent plants. Structure in the small garden is not just about solidity of dense evergreens, but also includes the use of striking accent plants such as Flaxes (Phormium spp). In a small garden, Phormiums can be the key ingredient of the planting. Their straplike leaves not only offer a wide variety of foliage color — from traditional green to variegations of yellow, green, red and deepest purple — but also provide movement, that other vital feature in small garden design. |
by Andrew Keys
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Allow Natural Movement
The kings of movers in the garden are, of course, the grasses. In a small garden, these bring the space to life. Swaying with the slightest air current, grasses take away the sterility of urban and suburban life.
I find the fountain grasses (Pennisetum orientale 'Karley Rose' is shown here) to be some of the best movers and groovers, with their fluffy flower heads dancing in the breeze. Planted in clumps, they contrast brilliantly against the bulky shapes of clipped evergreens.
The kings of movers in the garden are, of course, the grasses. In a small garden, these bring the space to life. Swaying with the slightest air current, grasses take away the sterility of urban and suburban life.
I find the fountain grasses (Pennisetum orientale 'Karley Rose' is shown here) to be some of the best movers and groovers, with their fluffy flower heads dancing in the breeze. Planted in clumps, they contrast brilliantly against the bulky shapes of clipped evergreens.
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| One of the most stunning of all gold grasses is Hakonechloa macra 'All Gold'. It is a one of the best grasses for containers in sun or shade, as it makes wonderful clumps or mounds. As a ground cover, it isn't perfect, as it is not fully evergreen and will die to an untidy mess in winter. This aside, it is still a great grass for small gardens. |
| The most popular of all blue grasses, common blue fescue (Festuca glauca), zones 4-9, is made for the smaller garden. It punches above its weight, bringing not only superb color but also movement with the discreet rippling of its blades in the wind. The foliage is a metallic blue during the spring and summer, though a touch greener in winter. It has the most delicate of flower heads in spring, held well above the foliage. Planting note: Festuca glauca can be easily grown from seed sown in the spring. They make great plants for hanging baskets and containers — especially when underplanted with dwarf bulbs, such as Grape Hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum), for spring flowering. Plant in groups in a sunny, well-drained position to bring out the color. |
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| Lower Maintenance with Ground Covers Although not one of the grasses, Black Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens') is a grasslike perennial that's always linked with them. One of the only true black plants that grows, it makes great ground cover and provides wonderful contrast with neighboring planting. It clumps but will spread if planted in moist soil in a sunny or semi-shaded situation. One bonus is the delightful bell-shaped, pale purplish white flowers that are produced in summer and followed by shiny blue-black berries. |
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| Golden Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea') is an old favorite in any garden, but it is especially useful in smaller gardens, where it can soften hard edges of walls and paving. It is a great ground cover and loves being planted in full sun, where its color really shines. Although rampant in nature, it is easily controlled and directed where it is required. It also gives us the bonus of summer flowers — in this case, cup-shaped bright yellow blooms. More: Make the Most of a Small Garden |
Ideabook published on June 29, 2012.
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