Modern Gardens - April Digital Sampler

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COOL CURVES break up a square front garden. Plant in waves to follow the sweep of the paving stones. Front garden glamour! FACE THE FRONT WORDS: FIONA CUMBERPATCH PHOTOS: ALAMY, FLORA PRESS, GAP PHOTOS/HEATHER EDWARDS, SHUTTERSTOCK A FEW SIMPLE, EASY touches are all it takes to transform your front garden It’s tempting to treat the front garden as a purely functional space. It’s somewhere handy to store the bins, or maybe a convenient place to park your car or stash your family bikes. But just because the space needs to be practical doesn’t mean that it can’t look good, too. Spend just a few hours refreshing the area and your home will soon have maximum kerb appeal! PRETTY UP YOUR PAVING According to the Royal Horticultural Society, a quarter of UK front gardens are now paved over. This may well be easy to maintain, especially if you keep a vehicle there, but it can look characterless. And, unless you use permeable or porous paving, it increases the water run off when it rains, which can cause problems with flooding. To add interest and re-green an area, lift away individual paving stones and plant in the spaces. You can limit this to random, single spaces, or create a chequerboard effect. Mind-your-own-business is a creeper that forms bright green low clumps, softening the edges of pavers. If you prefer something with scent, creeping thyme is another fast grower. To plant, simply dig a hole about the same size as the pot, push the plants in and pack around them with compost. You should see the space filled out with greenery over the summer. Mind-your-own-business can be invasive so it will need to be pulled out of the soil if it spreads further than you want it to. A group of pots or containers is another simple way to refresh a paved front garden. Opt for a couple of large pots. Not only will their heaviness deter thieves from making off with them but they make more impact than lots of smaller containers. An elegant small tree such as an olive or a bay, positioned either side of your front door, helps to frame the entrance. Keep them neatly trimmed so the branches don’t intrude, catching on people’s clothes, or poking the postman in the eye! TIDY UP THE PATH Make sure that your path is well maintained and clearly marked. Ideally, a path should be three to four feet wide so two people can walk side by side along it. Trim back any hanging shrubs or GOLDEN OATS (Stipa gigantea) creates a see-through, light filtering screen. A LOW, NEAT hedge, such as box, makes an attractive boundary marker. PHOTO CREDIT HERE PLEASE 64 MODERN GARDENS APRIL 2017
REPAINT THE front door for an instant, inexpensive refresh. This slate blue is both intense and striking. PROJECTS RAISED UP POTS of pink hydrangeas make a pretty focal point by the door. FRAME YOUR entrance with two elegantly simple bay trees. ECHO PATTERNS such as these large and small square shapes. GOOD IDEA Pale grey pavers, contrasted with smaller pebbles, break up the ‘corridor’ effect. Stay secure Once your front garden is looking good, here’s how to safeguard it from unwanted attention: PHOTO CREDIT HERE PLEASE PHOTO CREDIT HERE PLEASE PATTERNED FOLIAGE like Siberian bugloss ‘Jack Frost’ softens edges. ✽ Secure hanging baskets with locking brackets. The Baskit Geni costs £4.99, www.baskitgeni.co.uk ✽ Add broken bricks to the base of containers before you plant them, as this will make them harder to lift and remove. Or consider cementing your containers into place so they can’t be moved at all. ✽ If you have a special or valuable piece of furniture or a pot which you wish to display, Platipus Anchors offers a permanent stake to which items can be bolted or chained. www.platipus-anchors.com ✽ Chain up your dustbin: thieves often use them to climb over garden gates to gain access. PHOTO ABOVE: WWW.KARENMCCLURE.CO.UK THANKS TO OAKLEY LANDSCAPES APRIL 2017 MODERN GARDENS 65
Page 1 and 2: MODERN GARDENS I APRIL 2017 I ISSUE
Page 3 and 4: SUBSCRIBE TODAY! Turn to pages 80 &
Page 5 and 6: How we did it... READER GARDEN 4 TH
Page 7 and 8: EASY IDEAS 4 BUILD A SHELF A simple
Page 9: EASY IDEAS GIANT ALLIUMS The talles
Page 13 and 14: EASY IDEAS TRELLIS TRICKS Painted p

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