Year Round Interest

Some gardeners are happy to have most of their garden flowering at once. They like to see a spring garden with lots of bulbs, or an early summer garden with roses and perennials, and they are happy to let it rest for the remainder of the year. Most gardeners, though, prefer to attempt a long season of interest, which involves trying to interweave plants so that there is always something, or some part, that looks good.

A garden takes time to develop, and never stands still. Planning planting for the short, medium and long term helps avoid the great gaps that can try the patience of even the most dedicated.

Trees, needless to say, are the most long term, often maturing long after we have gone!

Shrubs, too, can take many years to look their best, which can mean a garden that is heavily reliant on them may take rather a while to develop. Herbaceuous perennials look established with remarkable speed, whereas annuals fulfil their promise and disappear within a year. It makes good sense, then, to include all these different plant forms in a garden.