How to decorate your garden with plants

Lily Cichanowicz Lily Cichanowicz
Garden with a view, Rae Wilkinson Design Ltd Rae Wilkinson Design Ltd Country style gardens
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Many people dream of cultivating a beautiful garden to surround their home. Gardens are enchanting sources of natural beauty that allow us to escape from the modern world. Immersing yourself in nature has scientifically proven benefits to creativity, stress relief, and concentration. Entertaining in a lush garden can help to create the perfect ambiance. Gardens attract local wildlife, and make stimulating environments for children, too. To reap all the benefits of a lovely garden, you must plan strategically and learn about the flowers you hope to plant there. There are tons of options, each with its own set of unique characteristics and needs. Here we’ve gathered a list of some of our favourite plants for decorating the garden, complete with tops for proper care. Enjoy!

Accentuate areas in your garden with hibiscus

Hibiscus plants are large shrubs of the tropical variety, which lend images of breezy vacations by the ocean. This makes them an appealing plant with striking colouring. Hibiscus plants can grow over 2.5 metres in height, and typically come in orange, pink and red. For these reasons they will stand out from the rest. Therefore, hibiscus plants are ideal for accentuating areas that you would like to stand as focal points in the garden. For instance, you might like to include one at the edge of the garden behind the seating area or near the pool. Hibiscus plants also attract hummingbirds and butterflies. They require a lot of sunlight. They like to be consistently moist, but try not to let them get overly wet. If you live in an area with cooler winters, be sure to move the hibiscus indoors during these months and replant in the spring. Because of this, leaving your hibiscus plants in large pots or planters is a good idea.

Use perennials

Perennials are excellent for the garden. In fact, almost all gardens contain them. If you’re wondering what exactly a perennial is, it’s a plant that returns each year after planting. Perennials will often increase in size with each bloom, which means you can then separate out the additional perennials and plant them elsewhere. In this way, they’re truly a gift to your garden that keeps on giving. Perennials are quite versatile and can be planted amongst shrubs or in flowerbeds. Plus, they come in tons of different varieties. Some popular types include the begonia, goldenrod, daffodils, asters, and coneflowers. There are also lots of perennial fruits, vegetables, and herbs. Your perennials will do best if you apply organic mulches each growing season. Most perennials also love lots of water.

Placing shrubs

Shrubs are miniature woody plants that differ from trees in their stature and multiple stalks. Some common shrubs are rhododendrons, lavender and periwinkle. They are often used in gardens for their aesthetic value and even play an important role in creating the structure of the garden due to their size. For instance, the shrubs in this garden by Cue and Co of London help to enclose the private eating area by creating a lush green surrounding. Placing shrubs at the perimeter of the garden can take the place of a fence or reinforce the border in an aesthetically pleasing way. There are many evergreen shrubs available, which is a plus for those living in colder climates. Further, shrubs can be pruned and trimmed to fit very distinct personal style within the garden. In general, periodically trimming back dead branches will help the plant to thrive. Shrubs also benefit from the use of compost covered with mulch.

Stand out with bougainvillea

This plant, native to South America and popular in Mediterranean climates, is known for its striking, colourful spring leaves. There are several species of bougainvillea including trees and vines. They often come in purple shades but can also be found in bright pinks and reds. Because of these striking colours they work well as ornamental pieces in the garden. Bougainvillea will catch the eye wherever you choose to place them. They can even be used to beautify the garden wall or fence as we can see here. They are ideal year-round plants for hot climates because of their drought resistant character. They do well in planters and pots for those living in cooler places as well. In which case, bougainvillea prefer smaller pots where the roots fit snuggly. 

Cultivate a rose garden

Roses are one of the most elegant and timeless plants you could include in your garden. They are sumptuous and spectacular in colour. Actually a kind of shrub, caring for roses may seem a bit intimidating. Rest assured, however, that with the right strategies, yours will thrive. The rose bush needs around 2 inches of water per week. It is best to give them one or two good soaks per week rather than several smaller bouts of watering throughout. Be sure to fertilise your roses during growing season, and at the start of spring consider sprinkling some water mixed with Epsom salt. You should trim dead, errant and damaged branches as you see them. Many experts recommend that you refrain from pruning your rosebush in the fall. Since the rose plant is a shrub, you can place them in the garden as you would any other shrub, just know that the rose bush can get quite large if left to grow freely.

Fill sunny spots with hydrangea

Hydrangea is a very diverse species of flowering plants. Choose an area in the garden that could use a burst of colour and that receives a good amount of sunlight, particularly in the morning. In addition to the white blooms featured above, hydrangeas often come in pink, blue, and purple. Plant the hydrangea with soil that is about 2/5 sand, 2/5 silt, and 1/5 clay, also known as loam. Add gypsum to the soil to aid in water drainage. Like the other plants on our list, hydrangeas do best if fertilised. In particular, add the fertiliser to your hydrangeas during late spring or early summer. Be sure not to overwater the plant. If you mulch your garden, the hydrangea will need even less water.

For more tips on beautifying your garden check out this guide on the path to garden heaven. Happy decorating!

These are some of our favourite garden decoration ideas. We'd love to hear yours. Let us know in the comments section, below!

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