Big Plants take Centre Stage

Creative Landscape Co provide us with monthly articles on topical subjects. Established garden designers and landscapers since 1989, they set up their Big Plant Nursery in Twyford, Berkshire to create a place to go for ideas and inspiration. This month we asked them to write about the role of big plants in gardens.

As many of us spend most of our time working inside, we crave more time outside in our own gardens – our own outdoor space where we can relax with friends and family and enjoy the health benefits this ‘down time’ brings. Regardless of the latest trend in landscaping materials, one thing is certain – it’s plants that will transform the garden and give us the interaction with nature and the haven we seek.

There was a time when we’d have to wait years to enjoy the pleasures a mature garden brings, but those days are gone. A handful of forward thinking nurseries have recognised the need to specialise in Big Plants, to give us the instant results we see daily in the media and aspire to. The power of Big Plants is quite magical. Just a few large feature plants can transform a small garden or unused corner and make excellent living screens for privacy. New houses are given an immediate sense of maturity and atmosphere. Newly planted beds in large gardens don’t look lost and maintain a sense of scale and proportion.

With this Big Plant trend come exotic and hardy plants from all over the world. Something a bit different, perhaps reminiscent of a favourite time abroad. We can now surround ourselves with lush and leafy plants like Fatsia japonica and mature palms such as Cordyline australis and Trachycarpus fortunei for instant effect and drama in the garden. Olive trees and old vines from Italy give a taste of the Mediterranean on our doorsteps. Mature trees and bamboo for instant screening are all possible and low maintenance, leaving you time to sit back and enjoy.

Now is the perfect time to plan for change as you can see the gaps that need filling and areas that need screening. Choose plants carefully to suit the aspect and your soil and ensure a balanced mix of contrasting and complementary colours, texture and form.

Browsing through books and magazines helps to identify the style you want to achieve, but you can’t beat wandering around a Big Plant Nursery for inspiration. Experience the plants first hand, decide what you like and seek advice from qualified nursery staff on what will work well together and what will thrive in your soil. Choose a style of plants that is sympathetic to the architecture of the house and your indoor taste and you’ll create an environment unique to you.

By selecting a few big plants to take centre stage and make an impact, together with your favourite bulbs and perennials to take care of the encore you’ll create a functional, beautiful outdoor space instantly that adds value to both lifestyle and property.

Creative Landscape Co and the Big Plant Nursery, Twyford, RG10 9PN (Tel: 0118 934 1500).

http://www.thebigplantnursery.com/