Blue sky gardening

[prev] …interest, it will attract birds into the garden and has the potential to distract from nuisance noises such as traffic.

Think bold
By far the biggest impact is achieved through a discerning choice of plants. The evergreen architectural statement plants. These will offer interest even in winter and will form the frame on which all the other plants hang. Plants such as hardy palms, strappy phormiums, yuccas, olives and ferns will do the trick. Leave plenty of space between plants to give them the space to grow elegantly to their full form and so you can appreciate the different leaf textures. “Less really is more,” advises Tim. “Don’t flood the planting – just pick out a couple of really nice specimens that start to put the structure in then work around that.”

Japanese mock orange promises lustrous leaves topped with sweet, bell-shaped blooms that are simply irresistible

Many shrubs combine interesting foliage with heavenly scented flowers that will carry you away as you inhale their floral charms. Glossly leaved Abelia grandiflora has stunning, petite white flowers tinged with pink, while Japanese mock orange, Pittosporum tobira, promises lustrous leaves topped with sweet, bell-shaped blooms that are simply irresistible. If you’re after a shady corner to retreat to then opt for the classic grapevine sprawling over a pergola support or try star jasmine, Rhyncospermum jasminoides, a twining climber with glossy dark green leaves that turn bronze-red in winter and that bears pure-white flowers from mid to late summer.

Hardy perennials that are at home in any garden but which have a hint of the Mediterranean when combined with the structural plants above include spiky leaved thistles such as eryngium and echinops, resinous herbs including lavender, sage and rosemary (try the prostrate type sprawling over the sides of a pot) and perovskia. Add blousy annuals such as osteospermum and you’re pretty much there.

One plant no self-respecting Mediterranean garden should be without is the late summer-flowering bulb agapanthus. Originally from South Africa, the large white and blue flower heads look sublime in patio pots or lolling over a retaining wall.

Winter survival
Most Mediterranean plants are fully hardy. What can kill them off is not cold weather per se, but sitting in cold, wet soil that rots the roots, essentially drowning them. If the soil freezes hard this is especially bad news. It is essential, therefore, that soil is free-draining or else plants will suffer. You can achieve this by digging in ample gravel or pea shingle. Keep on adding it until you can see it in the soil. Many of these plants will grow on rocky, poor soils in the wild, so don’t worry about transforming the structure of your soil – your new plants will appreciate it.

Pots should also have a little grit or gravel stirred into the compost to help keep their roots happy. Raise containers up on pot feed so that water can drain out easily from the base. Pop some pebbles or pieces of old terracotta over the drainage holes inside the pot to stop the holes from clogging up. You can finish off your planting with a mulch of pebbles. Not only will this keep moisture in during the summer (Mediterranean plants still like some soil moisture!) it will set the plants off beautifully, creating a really professional finish that makes the garden positively glow. Laying landscaping fabric beneath the pebbles will also help to suppress opportunistic weeds and make the planting much lower maintenance. With a little planning and an artistic eye you’ll soon create your own corner of the Med. All that will then be left to do is to pour yourself a glass of wine and soak up the atmosphere of your warming oasis!

USEFUL STOCKIST
Olive Grove Nurseries stocks a wide range of architectural and Mediterranean plants, pots and statues. Visit them on the Oundle Road in Polebrook, Northamptonshire PE8 5LQ.
Contact: 01832 275660
www.olivegrovenurseries.co.uk