While our ancestors threw off the influence of Great Britain in favor of a more democratic and anti-imperialist government, they were thinking in terms of money and politics. This is important to keep in mind for all those Yanks who still hold the revolutionary American spirit close to heart: taking garden tips from the British is not the same as being ruled by them! And once you get a whiff of the styles these Brits are sporting, you will never look back.
Designer Spotlights, brought to you from the BBC Garden section, is as aesthetically pleasing as a website as it is with garden tips. The Designer Spotlights feature many up and coming and highly regarded garden designers from Great and Greater Britain:
The first featured artist is Sarah Eberle, who has a degree in landscape architecture and was awarded an honorary degree from Greenwich University for her designs just last year. She drew early influences from the Modernist Art period and was classically trained, at first, as an architecture proper student. She claims she is more of a farmer than a gardener, so her designs reflect this attitude as well. Her top plants to have in a garden are: Euphorbia wulfenii, cow parsley, hawthorn beech trees in autumn.
Here is a photo of Sarah Eberle’s submission to the 2007 Ellerslie Flower Show
To recreate her look, check out some of these products:
Heronswood.com for “unusually great plants”: Euphorbia ‘Jessie’ for sale for $13.95.
Modernist furniture at a modest price: Ellis 3-Piece Sitting Group for $449.00, a total of $180.00 knocked off the original kist price.
On to the second favorite designer of the BBC Gardening Section: John Brookes, a legendary designer with over 50 years experience in landscape designing! While Sarah Eberle brings a fresh, modernist approach to landscaping, John can help build your knowledge of the basics of landscaping. Interesting enough, when John first started out he was considered ahead of his time and labeled–a Modernist! To him, that means using concrete skillfully in your designs. His designs are often described as “handsome” rather than “cute” or “pretty”. Understandable, when you observe his hearty, large plant life, sleek pathway and furniture design, such in the Denmans, one of his favorite gardens:
To channel John Brookes’ classic, handsome designs, here are some garden products and plants to consider:
Lavender buds for your garden, sold by the pound or in bulk by the San Francisco Herb Company
Ranging between $8-15 a pound, the San Francisco Herb Company gives you several different options of Lavender plants to customize the product for your garden needs. You can’t resist the smell of Lavender in the summertime!
The other product I would recommend to emulate John Brookes’ design would be concrete. While I can’t exactly recommend exact places to buy concrete since it is a very localized process and unfortunately not conducive to the Internet, I do want to say that concrete for pathways or walls is not as disgusting and stark as you might think.
Some tips:
1. Always draw out a map of the landscaping plan beforehand, and make sure it is to scale and you have the measurements of your land and the projected width/ height of any plants, walls, fountains, etc you plan on putting into the garden.
2. Think about how you will water the garden and keep it healthy: will there be an underground watering system? Hoses? Do you have the adequate soil and water supply to support the type of garden you want to create?
3. Think about the aesthetic of your home and how you can compliment it with a garden. Old colonial? Do some brick pathways. Modern bungalow? Concrete paths and maybe some bamboo.
Best of luck with your designer tip of the week! Don’t forget to check out the BBC Gardening page itself, there are plenty of other designers to discover!
Find at Smarter.com: Shop for garden decor and flowers.
