Plants for the Garden

To enable the different elements of a garden to blend comfortably and attractively, there has to be balance, which can to a large degree be dictacted by the trees, shrubs and flowers that you choose. By opting for plants that complement and harmonize with other aspects of the garden, such as the paving or lawn, and its overall size and shape, you can create a framework in which art and nature reach a happy equilibrium. To help you choose plants to suit your garden's needs, concise descriptions of a wide range of trees, shrubs, roses, climbers, perennials, ground cover, bamboos, grasses, bulbs and annuals and biennials have been discussed on our gardening forum.


Principles of Planting
"Harmony" is perhaps the most important word in making a garden. You want somewhere that is relaxing but also stimulating to the senses, where art and nature have reached a happy equilibrium. Creating a balance between the different elements of a garden, such as the paving, lawn, trees, shrubs and flowers is crucial to the end result. Colour is an essential design element, but because flowers are relatively fleeting, it can be difficult to maintain interest all year long. The stronger the framework of the garden, with plenty of architectural plants, the less vital it will be to have flowers all year round.

Small gardens are especially difficult to plan. All plants are highly visible, so there is no room for the spectacular flowering plant that looks messy for the rest of the year. Good foliage and flowers with a long season are vital.


Creating a Structure
It is the larger or more upright plants that do most to develop the garden framework, dividing it into sections and serving as a guide as you walk or look round. Trees or shrubs with a narrow; vertical, columnar habit have lots of impact, but are useful in that they take up little space. Trees, under whose branches you can walk, hedges that act as green walls, or plants with strong shapes, all provide the visual bones for the garden. The softer, more formless shrubs and flowering perennials are the flesh. Some of the most successful gardens are those that balance the formality of clearly designed shapes, such as clipped hedges and topiary, with the informality of burgeoning borders of flowers and shrubs.


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 ir 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 that a garden is heavily reliant on them many take rather a while to develop. Herbaceous perennials look established with remarkable speed, whereas annuals fulfill their promise and disappear within a year. It makes good sense, then, to include all these different plant forms in a garden.

Brighten up your garden

Okay, so when it comes to the time when it's chilly outside it does not mean your garden can´t look cheery. Spend a few hours potting up winter flowers and you cna enjoy them from the warmth of indoors all through the winter months.

It's a good idea to place containers in a sheltered spot away from the wind. Stack them and they will also be safe from ground frost.

Universal Pansies are the number one choice for winter, and pot them, forking in plenty of nutrients into a quality potting compost and add a slow release fertiliser.

If the weather is frosty, move pots into the garage or shed to protect them. Terracotta and ceramic pots can crack if the compost inside them freezes, so protect them with a layer of bubble wrap.

Choice plants for winter pots in sheltered areas are the dense purple Aster x frikartii `Monch`, but once the frost sets in take the post indoors. The one plant that can survive, frost, rain and snow though are Cyclamen coum - they thrive in the coldest weather conditions.

And if you want a good climber when every other plant in your garden has gone to sleep, your best best is Clematis cirrhosa ´Freckles´, which is pale yellow with brown specks - perfect for that dull fence.

My First Egg!

Oh my goodness Nigella, our Catalana hen has laid her first egg today and it is simply beautiful.

I caught her earlier behaving very strange, I walked down the garden and they didn´t come running to me as they usually do so. At first I thought they were all down the garden together, until I spotted the other 2 girls, Henny Penny and Dehlia beside the shed digging in the dirt and collecting grass!

I began to get worried and I was thinking all sorts, such as a dog had gotten them or they had managed to get out, I even thought they could be in Mark's van, who was here today helping us with our roof.

As I was slowly starting to panic, Gordon Ramsay stuck his head out of the chicken house - I was then even more confused as this is the most unusual place for them to be inside their house at that time of day, which I think was around 4.30pm.

I went around the back of the house and lifted out one of the wooden doors, for easy access to the eggs - hahhaha harrrrr - now, before we get excited she had not laid her egg at this point but while I was being nosey I spotted she was nest making and then felt awful I had disturbed her so I carefully put the door back on and snuck away back to the house. I half expected Nigella to follow me as she always does when I am outside - thinking I have sweetcorn, in fact she probably looks at me and sees sweetcorn!

An hour later I went back down for a wander to find the chickens and again I could not find them. Fortunately they were further down the garden, where we have been showing them to go so I quickly looked in the house and there it was - THE GOLDEN EGG hehehe. I am so chuffed as the chickens have been with us 12 days - whoop whoop!

I started shouting for Chris and squealing with delight but as Chris was working he didn´t see me, only heard me so he jumped up because he thought I had fallen over or something! But there I was, grinning from ear to ear outside the front door with a warm egg in my hands - pure joy!

We look forward to more egg laying from here on in and I hope you enjoy the images :)

Gardening, Spain and England

Hello fellow gardeners its Gill again,

I was in Spain last week staying with my son and daughter in law. Phew it was hot!!! They have my favourite tree in their garden, a jacaranda, wish I could grow them here. The highlight of my week was going to a garden centre out there and seeing all the exotic things you can buy that you definitely dont see here in Hampshire. They bought a mango tree that had 6 fruits on before we forced it into the car along with several other plants, and had one fruit by the time it got home! Also they bought a paw paw tree for €5.75 what an absolute bargain, thats what the mango cost too, and guess what else, something I thought I would never see, my favourite nut, a macadamia tree also that price. By the next day they werent looking too happy being planted out in all that heat but I have my fingers crossed for their survival. It was a wonderful experience going there.

What a shock to come home to half of that temperature at Gatwick and rain. When I drew up into the drive though, my hydrangea had bloomed whilst I was away. I have a piccy for you, but dont know how to get it onto here, something else I have to learn hehehe! All this technology is fairly new to me, I take a long time to learn.

As soon as I dumped my luggage my first port of call was my girls (chickens), then the greenhouse. Woohoo I have some baby tomatoes, thank goodness for my neighbours watering and looking after for me.

Yesterday I went to Frensham garden centre. I like that place, they make the most delicious shortbreads for only £1 for a huge one. Their plants are healthy and the prices are similar to most centres. There is so much to see there its well worth a visit. They have a good range of acers my second favourite trees (I think I have about 8 in my garden).

I go to a garden centre every Wednesday with two friends of mine, and we always eat out there too, there must be about 18 that we go to regularly. If any have any bargains I will let you know of them although I know that most of you are in Spain. Hopefully we have some English readers too. Guess what, yes its raining again, thank goodness its summer else it would be worse!!!

Okay peeps Im going to love you and leave you, enjoy your gardens, catch you again soon, take care, Gill.

New Campo Girls Author

Hi all,

Just thought I would introduce myself, my name is Gill and I am Campo Girls mother in law. I love plants and over the years have gathered a little knowledge about some of them, emphasis on little haha! I live in Hampshire on the eastern side and about half an hour from the coast. My garden is a typical size for a semi detached 1930s house, maybe slightly longer. I have a large patch for my chickens, a small greenhouse, a couple of lawns, loads of flowers and the rest looks like a bomb site. I would like to be one of those people who potter about outside every day, but unfortunately I border on lazy! I want my garden to be lovely with as little effort as possible. I adore flowers and trees but rarely pick them, they should be outside but am not aversed to someone giving me some from a shop, they have been grown for the purpose. Come to think of it, other than Mothers Day and my birthday, I never get any given to me now.

I am widowed and have been for over 15 years, my husband died young of cancer, and he would pick me meadow flowers sometimes, which of course these days I wouldnt encourage, as there arent enough meadows left. Every year he would stop his car when he saw the very first pussy willows and bring me a couple of sprays home, their lovely fluffy yellow heads always reminded me that spring was round the corner. Then when sticky buds were about to burst open, he never failed to bring me some home, something he also did for his Mum when he was a little boy.At Xmas he used to stop in a small lay-by just outside Four Marks where we lived to collect me a few teasles to spray gold and silver for the festive season. I have never picked any of these things since myself, then it makes it more magical that he did.

Okay folks, I have given you a very small insight of my love for flowers and hope to write to you all a lot more in the future. In fact next time I just have to tell you about my trip to a garden centre in Spain last week, the exotic things you can buy there that obviously wont grow at home. Take care all, see you soon, Gill.

NEW Gardening Forum for Spain

Campo Girls & Hoes launch their first Forum for the Spanish gardening community!

Gardening Spain & Forum

This is a new forum that we have just started this week and we look forward to meeting new people, we have some members from the USA already (as we share similar climiates to some parts of America).

As much as we love writing the blog and keeping up with the gardening community we needed room to grow and a Gardening Forum seemed the perfect opportunity for us to do just that - we will keep up with the blog but also continue to work on the forum.

We look forward to seeing you all and please do come and introduce yourself!