Keep off the grass!

* I was invited to the press preview for and provided with a pair of tickets to Gardeners’ World Live so I’m marking posts from the show as 'Ad’ - as usual my views and opinions are very much my own. Be sure to check out all of my posts from the show.

Be prepared for something entirely different - and a beautiful border which I absolutely love. I don’t think it’ll be something we recreate here, although the yellow red hot pokers could be a contender!

This garden designed by James Fenneberg takes the brief of ‘my garden escape’ to an entirely different level. He has designed a space which transports you through his choice of plants and materials. Agaves with their texture thorns feature prominently and symbolise ‘the sense of protection he wanted to create in his border’, and the results are stunning.

In addition James was also inspired by our ever changing climate to create a drought tolerant design which also features repurposed volcanic sand and rocks to create an ecological habitat for insects. And the weather on the day we visited the border couldn’t have underlined his message any more. We spent some time chatting with James and remarked how he was noticeably less flustered than some of the other garden designers who were watering the plants in their gardens so that they would look their best for the duration of the show.

Not so for James though, that’s definitely a design element that paid off - and one that I think we will all need to incorporate more and more into our garden spaces. Though if it means having sculptural plants like this, then it would be relatively easy to get on board with that wouldn’t it?

* With thanks to Gardeners’ World for inviting me to Gardeners’ World Live, it was as fabulous as ever!

You will never want to leaf

* I was invited to the press preview for and provided with a pair of tickets to Gardeners’ World Live so I’m marking posts from the show as 'Ad’ - as usual my views and opinions are very much my own. Be sure to check out all of my posts from the show.

The banana plant we saw recently at the Newark Garden Show reminded me of this beautiful border at last year’s Gardeners’ World Live, and once I dug the photos out I had another mixed smile and groan at the garden’s cheesy title. The theme for the Beautiful Borders at the show was ‘My Garden Escape’ and I think I’d quite happily escape to this garden, despite the cheese, and who knows maybe I wouldn’t want to leave…

This garden, designed by Kiran Vaidya, invites us to escape to our very own slice of tropical paradise. By just using foliage the garden shows the versatility and variety of leafy plants ‘whilst highlighting the important role of greenery in relieving stress and promoting positive mental health, especially in urban communities where access to green spaces is limited.’

And I don’t know about you, but just looking at these photos makes me want to breathe more deeply and breathe in the fresh air. In my mind’s eye that breath is cool, but not cold and warm enough to be comfortable.

I love the textures and colours that you can get through foliage, along with the drama. Though of course having these plants in your garden is likely to come with the need for additional care and attention over the cooler months, but I can’t help but think it’d be worth it.

* With thanks to Gardeners’ World for inviting me to Gardeners’ World Live, it was as fabulous as ever!

A beautiful border that's In the Pink

* I was invited to the press preview for and provided with a pair of tickets to Gardeners’ World Live so I’m marking posts from the show as 'Ad’ - as usual my views and opinions are very much my own.

The theme for the beautiful borders at the 2023 Gardeners’ World Live was ‘My Garden Escape’, but as ever they were bursting with inspiration and ideas, and lived up to their name of being beautiful.

This week I’m sharing the border designed by the Gardeners’ World presenter Sue Kent, titled In the Pink.

Pink is Sue’s favourite colour and she says that scented flowers are her joy and painting her escape. This border includes all three of these, and I correctly spotted the colour progression from bright pink to white pink, and includes roses and peonies, annuals and perennials and the odd vegetable too.

The spaces aren’t large, but it really does show what you can do in a small space. Even so, the colour progression was clear, so here’s a closer look at each end of the border.

Colour affects our energies and emotions, in this border Sue has created a space ‘for visitors to absorb and assess how that colour makes them feel’ - I know I left with a smile on my face.

But one last picture, the art and painting. Sue explained that painting was important to her, but she also needed something that would cope with all weather and wouldn’t spoil for the show. That ruled out paper and watercolours, as soggy paper wasn’t really the look. So she dug out her pink nail varnishes and a piece of glass and took it from there.

Brilliant, hey? And definitely beautiful. I so wish you could experience the beautiful smell for yourself!

* With thanks to Gardeners’ World for inviting me to Gardeners’ World Live, it was as fabulous as ever!