Wasteland Garden. Lessons from Chelsea By Veronica Sliva V


isiting Chelsea never fails to inspire with many lessons to be learned. But, just like the coutu-


rier fashions presented on the runways in Paris and Milan, the ideas and concepts need to be translated into something practical for home gardeners. Here are some of the lessons I took away from Chelsea Flower show. Create Structure. Many of us have


small gardens with a hodgepodge of plants. The look soon becomes depress- ingly cluttered. At Chelsea though the show gardens are very small, the designs are structured with strong lines. Most of the gardens used evergreen hedg- ing to define their spaces. If evergreens aren’t your thing, fencing or screens can work in the same way. The key is to set boundaries to contain the space. Style. Naturalistic looking plantings


dominated the show gardens with orna- mental grasses, perennials, small shrubs and herbs all intermingling together to create a tapestry of colour. Almost all the gardens incorporated native plants into their designs. This trend is not new to Canadians. We know that natives are a great addition to the garden and require less maintenance, water and fertilizers. Limit your colour palette. One of our biggest mistakes gardeners make


26 • Summer 2014 M&G Centenary.


is to plant too many different plants in too many different colours in too small a space. By limiting the type of plants and sticking to a few colours you maxi- mize impact without creating confu- sion. As in the past few years at Chelsea, the feminine combo of pink, mauve, white and pale yellow was the dominant colour palette of choice.


The Element of Repetition. It’s


tempting to want one of everything at the garden centre. I know I do. But try to resist. In all of the show gardens the same plants (and colours) were repeat- ed over and over again. This repetition brought unity to the plantings and drew your eye through the garden from one element to the next.


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