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Fabulous Front Gardens

July 7, 2016 By Jill Anderson 6 Comments

I went to the Hampton Court Flower Show on Monday and bought a greenhouse… I didn’t actually take it home with me, just ordered it ready for delivery in September, when our garden renovation should be complete.

I’m pretty excited about our little greenhouse, it’s only 2 x 2metres and it’s got a smart dark-green frame. There are usually show-offers on this sort of thing, so it had 20% off the price. No more over-wintering plants in the shed or trying to start plants off inside, light-filled window-sills are distinctly lacking here.

Just before the excitement of the greenhouse, I made a bee-line for the small show gardens. This is partly out of nostalgia for the 2 gardens that I designed a few years ago at The Show, but mainly because they’re such inspiring little spaces.  

I think you’ll like these fabulous small, front gardens designed by winners of a competition organised by The R.H.S. and B.B.C. local radio. 

This is a Cornish garden Tre Wostiwedh [Home At Last], by Jenny Booty, Lizz Dobinson, Nicky Shellis and TimWalker, I know, that’s what I thought, 4 designers … but they obviously made it work.

Fabulous Front Gardens- tree ferns in a front garden- a Cornish garden

Fabulous tree ferns in this front garden

All these plants are designed for a Cornish garden, so they may be too tender to use further North, but you can usually find hardier plants with similar shapes.

Lush plants and tree ferns

Stone garden wall

stone garden wall and water feature

Tender plants like these purple Aeonium could be housed in a greenhouse over winter…. if you’re lucky enough to have one!

blue Agapanthus flower

A pretty Agapanthus flower

Dark orange daylily

Sizzling Hemerocallis aka Daylily

This is ‘Fancy a brew? Take a Pew by Lee Burkhill, who won the Manchester local radio competition. I like how the edging to the cobbled path leading up to the front door gives such a strong lay-out, and the raised bed-seating arrangement is a neat idea.

small front garden, cobbled path

front garden water feature

water feature, yellow hellenium flowers

Another lovely water feature

Front gardens really matter, A LOT … they’re so often paved over and I understand how much parking spaces matter, but you can see here how much value they can add. They’re great habitats for birds and beneficial insects, they soak up rainwater and help to prevent flooding, and we’ve had enough of that recently. It’s probably the only part of your garden that you walk through every day, so why not make it wonderful.

If your front garden is also your parking space, then why not add a little planting round the edge. Maybe a bit of hedging or a Clematis climbing round the door, a bit of greenery does us the world of good.

Did you get to the Show this year? Please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Jill

all photos: Jill Anderson.

 

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How To Avoid Watering Your Garden great dixter topiaryGreat Dixter- gardening inspiration nettles, nettle fertiliserHow to make nettle fertiliser My Garden & The War Against Slugs
Filed Under: Blog, Garden Design, Gardening, Growing Food, Plants, Recycling & Sustainability Tagged With: designs for front gardens, greening grey Britain, sustainable gardening

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Comments

  1. P says

    July 8, 2016 at 6:04 am

    What a good point- it’s the only part that
    You walk through everyday, so make it wonderful.

    Hm. Yes, I probably should be planning the front a lot more than I am! Thankyou for pointing this out! Love your blog. P

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      July 8, 2016 at 8:52 pm

      Thank you so much for your kind comment about the blog! I think we ignore front gardens because they’re small, but it’s amazing what you can fit into a small space. : )

      Reply
  2. Peter says

    July 8, 2016 at 8:03 pm

    You’re a far better photographer than I am Jill. Great piece there. Funny the things you saw I now wish I’d spent longer admiring, in better detail.

    X peter

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      July 8, 2016 at 8:57 pm

      Thank you Peter! The thing is, it’s such a big show that you can’t take it all in. I take hundreds of photos and ‘see’ things that I hadn’t really noticed at the time. What a great day though!

      Reply
  3. nicola says

    July 9, 2016 at 9:37 pm

    Thank you for all the lovely photos you have sent out. I went to the Show yesterday and found it excellent. I, too, liked the front gardens display – very inspiring.

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      July 12, 2016 at 12:09 pm

      Hello Nicola, There is always so much to see at the Show, something for everyone, and nice to be able to buy plants, although I didn’t get any this year. I’m glad you liked the photos, I do like sharing them!

      Reply

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Hello, I’m Jill Anderson.
This is where you’ll find good, solid information about gardening, growing fruit & vegetables and how to keep it all looking good.
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The healing, calming power of nature in one photo. The healing, calming power of nature in one photo.
These wonderful autumn colours won’t be around for much longer. But that’s ok, because now is what matters, & their fleeting beauty makes them even more precious.
It’s easy to see how being among trees & nature is so beneficial for our health & wellbeing. 
Have a great Sunday.
Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it lo Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it look spectacular with this bold front door.
Today has been hard work, after a lovely time last week in Norfolk. The north coast there is spectacular. Realising these last few months, that there are so many beautiful places here. 
Have a nice evening.
Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Vis Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Visiting to see the Anish Kapoor sculptures, which are amazing, but unprepared for the beauty of the grounds & garden. 
Such a treat, worth coming to Norfolk for this alone!
Hope you’re keeping well, & managing to smile some of the time. x
P.S. more of Houghton Hall & Anish Kapoor on my stories
We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberrie We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberries, after coffee & cake, sitting in the churchyard - the cafe was full, & the churchyard is a quiet, peaceful spot..... as you’d expect.
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One little advantage of lockdown is walking so much more, rather than using the car. Though it shouldn’t have taken something as momentous as this, for me to change bad habits 🙁
Hope you’re weekend is going well.
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Great for small space gardening, imagine how much room you need to grow these without vertical supports.

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1 Turks turban, for its flamboyant shape & colours, though it also tastes good.
One unknown, grown by my grandsons in their homeschooled science lesson.
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Stay cool my friends x
I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium reg I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium regale) which is flowering right outside our bedroom window. 
It gets sun for about 4 hours only, you can order the bulbs now for planting in September. It’ll reappear every year & waft delicious scent around your garden, or through your windows.
Have a very happy Monday x
It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be said for fabulous seasonal flowers that haven’t travelled thousands of miles ...... & are wonderful for biodiversity
A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-s A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-summer!) & it’s, mostly, all growing nicely.

Spinach, courgettes & garlic in shot here. 
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday x
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I’ve thought long & hard about how to view the tumult in the world we’re living in now. 
The only thing that works for me, is to choose hope.

It’s a tall order, but avoiding mainstream news & speculation helps avoid the anxiety, that’s often waiting in the wings.

One day soon there’ll be grandchildren clambering over this again.
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