The Covid-19 pandemic has turned us into a nation of garden lovers, meaning more and more of us are looking to transform our less than inspiring back yards into our own personal oasis. But where to start? It’s tempting to take a trip to your local garden center and load up your trolley with floral delights, but your garden will look so much more powerful with a solid theme in mind before you let loose in the perennial’s aisle. Therefore, let us take you through the ten garden themes bound to get your creative juices flowing.
1. English Cottage Garden
Imagine a multi layered shrub smorgasbord including lavender, phlox, foxgloves and love-in-a-mist engulfing your lawn boarders with climbing wisteria framing your front door. This type of garden isn’t just restricted to the countryside, it can be created in the city, or even in small patio gardens with the use of hanging baskets and pots. Traditional white wooden benches such as our New England range works perfectly in keeping with this theme.
2. Scandi
Minimalism and simplicity are the aim of this game. Scandinavians spend most of their time outside in the summer months, so a comfy seating area is a must. Focus on a neutral colour palette of whites and greys for cushions and throws and natural wood for your garden furniture such as our Roble range. Decorate your oasis with fairy lights and candles to really create that all important sense of hygge. Plant lush foliage with a pop of colour in boarders and containers such as lily of the valley, Boston ferns and nasturtiums.
3. Wildlife Garden
We all know that wildlife is in drastic decline around the world, but we can help by converting our gardens into a haven for our local wildlife using some very simple steps. Leave a patch of your lawn uncut, or just mow a walkway through your lawn and after just a few months you will find that natural wildflowers will bloom, attracting butterflies and insects. Choose flowers to plant that have large flower heads such as daisy’s and echinacea, as bees prefer these. Create a pond using an old container and sink it into your boarders. Make sure to put stones/ bricks in the container to make sure that any wildlife that accidently falls in can get out. Traditional style wooden garden furniture works well with this theme, such our Turnberry bench.
4. Mediterranean
This style will make you feel like you’re on holiday even in your own back garden. Key features of a Mediterranean garden include shaded seating areas created using pergolas with climbing plants such as grapes and roses. Due to the hot sun and lack of rain, most of these gardens have gravel or tiles rather than grass, which is handy if you’re after a low maintenance garden. Plants are displayed in terracotta pots and you’ll want to choose drought tolerant species such as lavender, Mexican bush sage and lamb’s ears. Garden furniture is often small and sleek, much like our Portofino range.
5. Moroccan courtyard
A place of calm and serenity, these incredibly stylish court yards are a jewel in the riads of Morocco. To create this look, painted white walls work best as a backdrop, with exotic palms and wispy grasses in large plant pots. A water feature is often in the center of the courtyard, surrounded by a tiled octagon shape. A comfortable low-rise seating area with plenty of cushions, throws and rugs finish off this style. Symmetry is key to pulling off this theme.
We hope these styles have got your brain buzzing with ideas to transform your gardens into your own personal paradise. Whichever style you choose, gardens are a precious resource for us all to relax and unwind in, helping to keep our bodies and minds healthy. It is a welcome realisation that if we take better care of our gardens, they will take care of us too.
To check out the furniture featured in this blog and find your nearest Alexander Rose retailer, go to our website https://www.alexander-rose.co.uk/.