Gardening - jan.qxp_Layout 1 17/12/2021 15:57 Page 1
The gold-medal winning Yeo Valley Garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show in autumn 2021 proves organic principles don't have to come at the expense of style and design
Green up your garden
In this period of garden dormancy, it’s time to hunker down with the mail-order bulb catalogues and plan for a colourful and exuberant 2022, says Elly West, as she recommends some of her favourites.
72 TheBATHMagazine
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JanUaRY 2022
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iSSUe 227
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British gardens cover an area bigger than all the country’s nature reserves combined, and they provide vital wildlife corridors
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here is something about the start of another new year that gets us thinking about what we can do better and the goals we may want to achieve. Looking outside at our gardens, we may have plans to make some changes, whether it’s a border that isn’t quite working, empty containers that need planting up, or a whole redesign – complete with a garden office. Our gardens are our sanctuaries, a break from the modern world where we can switch off and feel at one with nature. An early foraging bumblebee, a robin hopping about in freshly dug soil – these are the joyful moments to be found in the garden right now, all the more precious for their scarcity. Gardening is inherently considered a ‘green’ activity but with the reality of climate change hitting home, we need to consider making changes in all areas of our lives, and the outdoor space that we take for granted is a great place to start. British gardens cover an area bigger than all the country’s nature reserves combined, an estimated 10-million acres plus, and they provide vital wildlife corridors. Our trees and greenery help combat air pollution, and soft landscaping (lawns and borders) help to manage water runoff, reducing pressure on urban drainage systems. Small changes really can make a big difference. So, at the risk of sounding ‘worthy’, if you are considering making new year resolutions that involve improving your garden, keep the environment in mind and everyone can potentially benefit. Having said that, it’s worth remembering that primarily we want our gardens to suit us and our lifestyle, and to look nice. A ‘green’ garden doesn’t have to be overflowing with nettles, brambles and log piles. Gardens can be neat and tidy, formal or informal, and still be doing their bit. Insects, birds and small mammals don’t care if
your edges are tidy, or what shape the lawn is. If your new prize rose has blackspot and greenfly, it’s not a failure to reach for a spray. Or to scatter slug pellets if your hostas are nibbled to lace handkerchiefs by slugs. Let’s not be militant about it, unless you want to be. But going forwards, in order to avoid chemicals where you can, just think of good practice in terms of nurturing healthier plants that will be less susceptible to pests and diseases. Think ‘right plant, right place’, and choose ones that can cope with drought, shade, sun or whatever the conditions might be. Hostas are notoriously delicious to slugs and snails, so don’t grow them in a damp border near a lawn as the problem isn’t going to go away (however many sacks of slug pellets you put down). Instead, put them in pots on the patio or grow them in a gravel garden where they’re easier to protect and harder for critters to get at. Think biodiversity in your planting as well, and try to choose a mix of plants that will flower in all the different seasons to attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies. I love including areas of meadow in the gardens I design. It doesn’t have to be a huge space, and can work well in both urban contemporary and more traditional
