When many gardeners hear the word “modern,” they often scrunch up their noses like they’ve suddenly caught a whiff of something foul. It’s true that many of us classify our landscapes as something other than contemporary. But even the most traditional of designs can benefit from an infusion of plants that one might describe as having a “modern look.” These plants serve as dynamic elements in a bed, easily becoming a focal point where perhaps one was missing. They can also seamlessly impart a space with a distinct sense of sophistication. With sleek architectural forms or moody foliage hues, these botanical elements give order to chaotic borders or simplicity to a color palette that has gotten out of control. Embracing these novel plants can help a staid design come alive. If you already have a modern home or landscape and are looking to fill in some blank spaces, the following selections are just what you need. But if you’re more of a traditionalist in search of some perennials that can breathe new life into tired beds and borders, the options below can also do the trick.
(Kniphofia ‘Incandesce’, Zones 6–9)
Size: 3½ feet tall and 2 feet wide
Conditions: Full sun; moist, well-drained soil
Native range: South Africa
Red-hot pokers in general look like they are straight out of outer space. Their rocket-like blooms are unlike almost anything else you’ll see in the plant world, and for that reason alone they make an excellent addition to any modern landscape. But their overall habit also make them well-suited to an orderly, minimalist bed. Long, thin, grasslike blades are held firmly upright throughout the entire season and give each individual plant a stately look. Then in early to midsummer, sturdy stems shoot from the base
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A shady corner is often seen as a problem area in a garden, but it needn’t be so. There are masses of gorgeous plants that will thrive in shade. Silver or variegated leaves work really well to brighten a dark spot, as do white or pale flowers, which almost seem to glow in shade. There is a plant for every shady garden and here we share some of our favourites. Included are plants for both dry and moist soils, evergreen perennials to provide interest all year round, as well as deciduous plants that seem to appear from nowhere in spring to brighten the garden with their delicate beauty. Our choices include recommendations from the Gardeners’ World team and familiar faces from across the gardening industry.
Right plant, right place, as Roy Lancaster’s book taught us, is a well-known adage and one we all try to live by. Get it right and your garden will love you for it. On closer inspection that phrase belies a whole historical context that is not evident at first sight. I was reminded recently of the stark fact that most of the plants we have in our gardens are from somewhere else. From Asia, the Antipodes, South Africa, to the Americas and continental Europe, these continents have supplied us for centuries with plants that fill our green spaces. Many are now so familiar and yet two hundred plus years ago they arrived as exotic specimens, delighting the Victorians and their predecessors.
Like many northern gardeners, I had red-hot poker envy for many years but ruled out growing them because of their iffy -chances of surviving winter in my region. However, I am very excited about some of the newer Kniphofia introductions we are growing at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Being able to overwinter a South African plant in the Midwest is pretty cool, right?
We design gardens in northwestern Connecticut’s Litchfield Hills, and many of our clients’ properties have sections that are rocky and steep. Embracing the unique contours of each site, we have built rock gardens, terraces, and plantings that flow downhill. We see each hillside as an opportunity to put together a satisfying plant palette that is easy to maintain and beautiful to behold. A bonus with slopes is that they provide good drainage by their very nature.
Most gardens have some dry shade, at the foot of walls where foundations draw water from the soil, or under eaves where little rain falls. Trees also create dry shade, as their roots take up a lot of water.
Colorful Summer Plantings for Sun and Shade Attract pollinators and wildlife to your garden with these colorful combinations for sun and shade gardens. Dreaming of summer
Up until this year, my backyard was all about function. But as summer approaches and our garden comes to life, the need to decorate outdoors and make our patio a more welcoming place to spend every sunny day has begun to blossom.
If you have limited space indoors, there is still a range of house plants you can buy to add greenery to your home. Succulents and cacti offer the biggest choice of small house plants, but there’s a wealth of other varieties to enjoy, from air plants that grow without compost to the carnivorous Venus flytrap. As well as small plants, look for slow-growing house plants that take time to reach their mature height, such as the nerve plant. Windowsills, desks, hanging planters and shelves can all be enhanced by space-saving house plants.
People who are living in an apartment are always looking for plant options that are easy to maintain and can be grown in a limited space. if you are one of those, this list is curated especially for you!