ON THE CATWALK, hemlines rise and fall at the drop of a Philip Treacy hat. In the garden, fashions are more like fine wine; they take a while to arrive on the scene and mature.
Garden design and horticulture in 2005 is about trends that have evolved in the past decade – natural materials, traditional and romantic planting, contemporary design with a classic twist – all underpinned by the respect for the environment and a necessity for the garden to be everything to all men and not just a rarefied environment for plants, Above all, the quick fix is out and longevity is in.
The television gardener Joe Swift, a partner in the London-based garden design firm Modular Garden, believes in simplicity, clean lines and generously sized spaces. The garden he created for a five-bedroom show home on a David Wilson devolvement near Purley in Surrey is a showcase for the latest trends and demonstrates how gardens are no longer just about growing plants but creating an outdoor room to fit the needs of all the family.
Concentric circles radiate from a single point at the kitchen door to form a seamless connection between house and garden. The garden is also accessible from the living room and dining room. The kitchen doors open out on to a wooden deck, while the living room and dining room open out on to slate paving.
David Orchin, the sales director on the development, believes that a well-designed garden helps to sell houses. “The real value lies in being able to get a quicker sale on your property than your neighbour, who might have the bog-standard lawn and borders around the edge. You
should also be able to get much closer to the asking price.” The more mature the garden, the better your returns.
In Swift’s garden, the planting uses a familiar plants with a fresh approach. He settled on a limited palette of purples and blues. “Lavender is a traditional plant,” says Swift, “but we’ve used it as a low-growing hedge to echo the rounded lines of the garden.” Purple-leaved New Zealand flax is artfully combined with Cortaderia “Rose Plume” and Carex comans “Bronze”. A repeat planting of three cherry trees lends the design cohesion and with a square apron of slate chippings at the base of each tree there is an element of formality and a faint echo of the slate paving immediately outside the dining and living rooms.
‘Planting is all about seasonality,” says Swift. “The cherry trees are spectacular in spring and give the garden height as well as dappled shade.” Their canopies also provide nesting sites for birds. For summer there is lavender, a bumblebee favourite, Verbena bonariensis, and ornamental onions. The sword-shaped leaves of New Zealand flax, broad-leaved Fatsia japonica and Mahonia “Charity”, with its fingers of sweet-scented sulphur-yellow flowers, maintain interest throughout the winter.
A shady seating area facing the house and furnished with two lilac steamer chairs adds the extra dimension. “I always like there to be at least two places to sit in a garden,” Swift says. “The deck and patio serve as areas for entertainment and dining but the seating area among the plants is purely for relaxation” – which makes this garden the perfect modern outdoor room.
GROWING PAINS
GEOMETRY is the basis for garden designs in 2005: borders, patios and lawns are laid out in concentric circles, rectangles and squares. Symmetry and repetition all contribute to the sense of smart formality.
Planting is unashamedly soft, romantic and natural. The plants are traditional but the planting is new: roses become ground-cover plants woven around the base of taller herbaceous perennials and tightly clipped topiary. The natural look is back with blowsy combinations of roses and traditional cottage garden plants, such as foxgloves, clematis and delphiniums. Small trees for tiny gardens are set to make a long-lasting impression while providing havens for wildlife. In the city canna lilies and palms are as hip as ever.
Wood, stone, slate and pebbles create a softer and more organic feel, although there is greater emphasis on the need to protect precious resources. As well as wood from sustainable sources, recycled timber for decking, trellising, fencing and furniture will lend a certain “shabby chic” to the garden.
This is the year of the restricted colour palette. Mossy greens and natural stone shades provide a canvas for splashes of colour from dark, velvety crimson roses such as Rosa chinensis “Mutabilis”.
Attracting wildlife goes with natural planting and organic materials. Wildlife-friendly features are blended into the design; planting should attract beneficial insects into the garden such as bumblebees; wildlife ponds are favoured over bubble fountains; small trees provide nesting sites for birds.
