Drama is more than just suspense-packed action movies at a breathtaking pace. The garden is the perfect place to present exciting sequences of perennials, with colours and shapes that will put a little pep in your garden in both summer and winter.
The well-known English garden specialist Adrian Bloom gives an exclusive interview to Floradania Marketing with tips and ideas on how to orchestrate your garden using plants.
Realism and structure
According to Adrian, it's a question of following some very simple principles when you are laying out a garden, and using plants such as perennials and grasses that will alter their expression with the changing seasons.
"Be realistic when you are starting out," is the friendly advice of the experienced gardening expert. "Look at the possibilities you have, and then plant a garden that will give you a successful experience."
Continuity and change
"The smaller your garden, the more important it is to focus on detail and on the individual qualities of the plants in terms of their seasonal topicality, colour and form, and the contrasts you can achieve if you combine them," Adrian continues. "Basically, you should choose plants that will provide both continuity and change."
"Use evergreens such as yew and thuja in different varieties to provide a permanent focal point for the garden all year round, while perennials such as hosta, alumroot and brunnera provide change, as their flowers and leaves alter according to the season."
Summer drama in the garden
If you would like a little more drama in your garden, you could make a 'flame bed' of perennials that fade from yellow into reddish hues, or maybe even create a little 'river' of blue plants that meanders down through the garden, flanked by taller plants and exciting ornamental grasses.
Plant suggestions for creating a 'river':
Brunnera macrophylla (brunnera)
Campanula (Dalmatian bellflower)
Gentiana (crested gentian)
Geranium (geranium)
Lavandula angustifolia (true lavender)
Salvia (sage)
Plant suggestions for creating a 'river bank':
Agastache (hyssop)
Astilbe (hybrid astilbe)
Digitalis (large-flowered foxglove)
Liatris (blazing star)
Lupinus (large-leaved lupine)
Lytrum (loosestrife)
Taxus baccata (English yew)
Caption: In the picture, the river is made of Campanula, with astilbe, hyssop, loosestrife, lupine and sage as the riverbank, but the colour theme can be varied to suit your taste and temperament.
Caption: Adran Bloom. Photo: Richard Bloom.
Plant suggestions for creating a 'flame bed':
Coreopsis (tickseed)
Crocosmia (montbretia)
Echinacea (purple coneflower)
Heuchera (alumroot)
Helenium (sneezeweed)
Hemerocallis (daylily)
Lychnis (sticky catchfly)
Lilium (lily)
Rudbeckia (coneflower)