Plant Combinations for an Abundant Garden. A. & G. Bridgewater

practical yet attractive.

      • Walls and fences: garden perimeters.

       THINK ABOUT THE PLANTS

      Don’t separate the selection of plants from getting the infrastructure right.

      • If you like relaxed plants such as bamboos, ferns and ornamental grasses, you will want an informal garden to complement them.

      • For clinical and regimented displays of summer- flowering bedding plants, you will need a formal garden.

       MAKING THE MOST OF BALCONIES

      These are more sheltered than a roof garden, and with a base that is firm and secure. However, a sun-facing position will rapidly dry compost.

      • If the balcony does not have a roof, fit a collapsible sunshade.

      • Where a balcony has a roof, but strong, late-evening sunlight still causes dazzle, you can fit a sun shade to the balcony’s upper edge.

      • Always make sure that water cannot drip on people or balconies below. Wherever possible, stand pots in large, plastic saucers.

       Infrastructure for roof gardens

       Persistent and buffeting wind combined with strong sunlight make roof gardens difficult but exciting places for gardening. Additionally, consider the following constructional questions.

      • Permission may be required from the building’s owner, as well as from local authorities. Also, check the thoughts of neighbors – it may not impress them.

      • The weight of the flooring needs to be light but strong – check with a structural engineer if in doubt.

      • The weight of pots and other containers – when full of soil and after being watered – may be excessive.

      • Don’t damage felt roofs.

      • Make sure excess water is adequately drained.

      • A sturdy screen is usually needed to filter strong wind. Make sure it cannot be blown away and cause damage to people and property.

       INFRASTRUCTURE EXAMPLES

       A SMALL GARDEN

      Within informal gardens, a surprisingly wide range of features can be included in a casual yet purposeful manner. The pergola acts as a focal point.

      

       INFRASTRUCTURE EXAMPLES

       A SMALL FRONT GARDEN

      Most small front gardens have a formal character, with plants in rows and neat roadside edgings. Porches help to create focal points for paths.

       A SMALL COURTYARD

      Courtyards are summer-leisure areas as well as places where plants can be grown. By their nature, courtyards are private areas, with complete seclusion.

       GETTING IT DOWN ON PAPER

      If you want the project to run smoothly, you need to plan everything out and make drawings. The procedure is as follows: first, make a rough sketch on a scrap of paper, showing the existing garden with measurements. Next, transfer these details onto graph paper to make a “site plan” (drawn to scale). Then, set a sheet of graph paper over the site plan and make a “master plan” of the new garden, tracing the boundaries and existing items as required.

       How do I make a working drawing?

       MAKING THE SITE PLAN

      About graph paper You will need a pad of graph layout paper – meaning thin paper that has been printed with a grid – the biggest size of pad that you can obtain. Look at the size of your garden; say it is 100 ft (30 m) long and 80 ft (25 m) wide, and decide on the scale of your graph paper. Count the squares on the long side of the paper and divide them by the length of the garden. Work to the nearest whole square. So, for example, if the paper is 100 squares long, then you could say that one square on the paper equals 1 ft (30 cm) in the garden.

      Measuring your garden Use a long tape measure to measure your garden. Start by measuring the length. Plot this measurement on the long side of the paper. Repeat the procedure with the width of the garden and plot it on the short side of the paper.

      Right angles – 90° angles Check for right angles by measuring the diagonals. For example, if your garden is in any way square or rectilinear, then the crossed diagonal measurements should more or less be equal.

      Awkward shapes You can plot an awkward shape by drawing a straight line from two fixed points – say between two trees. Step off at regular intervals along the straight line and measure how far the curves of the awkward shape are out from the stepped-off point.

       Paths and drives

      If the site plan is a record of items and structures that you have no choice but to leave unchanged, you have the option here of whether or not to mark in the position of the paths and drives. You could say that, since the position of the front door and the front gate are fixed, it follows that the paths will also stay the same. This does not necessarily follow, however. That said, it is usually a good idea to draw them in.

       Slopes in cross-section

      The easiest way of recording a slope is to draw a cross-section view. Draw the length of the slope on a piece of graph paper and label the line “top.” You need a spirit (carpenter’s) level taped to a 7 ft (2 m) long board. Working from the top of the slope, hold one end of the board on the ground so that the level is true, and measure the vertical distance from the overhanging end of the board down to the ground. Mark this in on the drawing. Continue down the slope until you have a record.

       ITEMS THAT YOU NEED TO MARK ON THE SITE PLAN

      • NSEW

      • Midday sun

      • Outline of boundary

      • Items that you want to keep or modify

      • House

      • Mature trees

      • Neighbors’ trees

      • Underground pipes and cables

      • Doors on house

      • Windows on house

      • Drain access points

      • Main gate

       MAKING THE MASTER PLAN

      Tracing the site plan Put a sheet of graph paper over the site plan and use the underlying plan to work out what you want in your new garden. You might well have to go through this procedure a dozen or so times before you have a drawing that suits all your needs.

      Pencilling in your design Once you have achieved a good preliminary plan,