It is in late spring, just after the tulips have ended, that I become delighted by the many flowering shrubs and distinctive foliage colours that seem to dominate the garden.
Of course there are various perennials flowering including Euphorbia, Geum, Geranium and bulbous plants such as Camassia and ornamental onions, but foliage colours and the flowering mounds of Viburnum and Deutzia shrubs attract all the attention.
My philosophy over shrubs concludes that shrubs are best used in gardens to create highlights and structure amidst a wider field of flowering perennials and ornamental grasses.
Even in my own garden where I trial many different plants, including lots of shrubs, the idea is evident, but ideally the relationship between shrubs and perennials should be far more pronounced. Many Deutzias grow too large for smaller gardens but I have found Deutzia rosea ‘Campanulata’ with D. x elegantisima ‘Rosealind’ (behind) remain sufficiently compact for my needs. The upright shrub on the right is Frangula alnus ‘High Line’. Its distinctive upright form suggest it would work in a variety of schemes, but I find it rather boring and not very elegant, for such an upright design feature I can think of many slim growing conifers that would look so much better, and would be evergreen.
Purple leaved foliage has featured in my gardens far a long time as it offers a strong, season-long contrast with the green foliage and flowers that generally dominate. Prickly Berberis, evergreen Pittosporum and Cercis with its flush of pink flowers on bare stems at the very start of the season have all proven indispensable.
In my vision of the shrub feature border, only the most distinctive shrubs, those that have good form, foliage and flowers over a long season, are used. A single specimen in a small border may suffice, but often two or more examples will be scattered across the border with the intervening spaces being filled with my characteristic perennial meadow plantings.
Here is a modern design by Sanne Horn for the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam using widely spaced Prunus underplanted with Liriope, Carex and ferns.
My eBook, Shrub Features, goes into the ideas behind this original approach to using shrubs in modern style gardens. I explain how to bring shrubs and perennials together in successful border plantings as well as offering an extensive list of the very best shrubs to use in this way. Creating this eBook gave me a lot of pleasure as well as teaching me a lot about a group of plants I had not been making full use of in the past.
Design & Plant provides garden design education at irresistible prices.
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