Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2025 i Gardens Illustrated Magazine

Every gardener faces their own challenges, but those of us with little space are always looking for ways to maximise every centimetre and fit in all the things we desire. In this issue, a Small Gardens special, we visit five very different diminutive plots to discover how their creators made the most of what they had – it is eye-opening how innovative and inspiring their solutions are. From the tiniest courtyard in the middle of an underground car park (page 54) and a chic city design (page 44) to a mini woodland-style sanctuary filled with planting (page 24), and a steeply sloping garden (page 74) to a suburban family space (page 62), there are so many insights and interesting ideas to spark your imagination. We’ve got planting tips for small…

Like a gardening superhero, Boyd Douglas-Davies is a man of action who likes to get things done. You may have never heard of him, but Boyd is one of the most prominent figures in the horticultural industry. He helped to elevate the business from old-fashioned plant shops to modern stores where everyone, young and old, can enjoy a day out, and during the pandemic, he saved us all from being cooped up indoors after persuading the government to re-open garden centres. He’s also the recently appointed chair of Greenfingers, the charity that makes gardens at children’s hospices. On first meeting Boyd, it’s easy to see why he’s been so successful in a career spanning more than 40 years. Boyd knows how to put people at ease, a skill learned from…

1 Betula utilis subsp. jacquemontii Birch is popular with designers thanks to the dappled shade it provides in summer, the leaf colour it gives in autumn and bark that provides interest in winter. This Himalayan birch is an excellent choice. Height and spread: 6m × 6m (in 20 years). RHS H7, USDA 5a-6b†. 2 Hakonechloa macra This semi-evergreen grass is a designer favourite thanks to its texture and mounded habit. It is ideal for softening hard edges. Prefers semi-shade. 40cm × 40cm. AGM*. RHS H7, USDA 5a-9b. 3 Viola cornuta ‘Victoria’s Blush’ An excellent evergreen groundcover, that flowers for months, from spring to autumn. Grow in sun or part shade. 50cm × 50cm. RHS H5, USDA 6a-11. 4 Ferns Many small gardens have a lot of shade – perfect for…

Tell us about your latest book and why you wrote it. The Philosophy of Houseplants delves into the emotional and psychological connections we form with indoor plants and explores the deeper meaning behind our love of houseplants. I wrote this book to move beyond practical care tips (although you’ll find those, too) and look at the philosophy, culture and joy of living with plants. It’s also about encouraging sustainable ways of buying and growing houseplants – less impulse, more intention. What did you learn from writing it? I was fascinated to discover how closely our indoor environments reflect the world outside, and how political, social and even economic factors have influenced interior plant trends. Take middle-class Victorians, for instance. Incorporating plants into their homes wasn’t just a decorative choice but a…

Tomoko Kawauchi Tomoko visits a calming courtyard garden in the heart of London, page 54. “As a designer, I find the transformation of small urban spaces like this really interesting and exciting.” Aileen Scoular Aileen enjoys the small garden of doctor Libby Webb, page 24. “Clever plant layering, multiple textures and a minimal colour palette make this compact garden punch well above its size.” Joe Hawksworth Joe illustrates design notes for awkward spaces, page 92. “Every garden can be beautiful – good design doesn’t have to be about big budgets, it’s about thoughtful choices and creative thinking.”…

UNTIL 25 SEPTEMBER The Green World of Brown Photographic exhibition of Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown’s iconic landscapes. 11am-4pm. Free. The Rose Paterson Gallery, Weston Park, Shifnal, Shropshire TF11 8LE. weston-park.com 5-6 SEPTEMBER Talking Plants A two-day symposium of talks, debates and workshops on ‘Digging into the detail’. From £130. Victoria Hall, Norfolk Street, Sheffield S1 2JB. eventbrite.co.uk 7 SEPTEMBER Plant Fairs Roadshow Browse rare and unusual plants at West Dean Gardens’ first autumn roadshow. 11am-4pm. £13.50. West Dean, Chichester, West Sussex PO18 0RX. plantfairsroadshow.co.uk For more events this month and throughout summer, scan the QR code with your phone camera or visit gardensillustrated.com/events-and-shows…

I am a keeper of lists. Everything I eat is written down in a diary. Each day’s appointments are detailed in another. Then there are the notebooks, the ones that chronicle everything from recipes to travel itineraries. It is only in the past few years that I have taken to keeping a garden notebook too – a habit I can highly recommend. My gardening diary has become invaluable. A vivid orange cover with a black paper spine and golden script, it reminds me of the Cairo tulips that fill the planters each spring. ‘May 2nd, ordered tulips’ acts not only as an aide-mémoire for the following year’s orders but forms a comprehensive list of purchases to check off as they arrive. It is rather like a Victorian cook’s receipt book.…

Source your plants from small, local nurseries, ideally that grow from seed or cuttings in the UK. Those plants are more likely to thrive Earliest garden or gardening memory Running wild through the local woods as a child, collecting things from the forest floor and disappearing among the trees. What has stayed with me is the dappled light through the layered canopy, and that sense of immersion shapes the way I approach design today. First plant love Tomatoes, without question. The smell of tomato vines on a sunny afternoon in the greenhouse is my favourite scent in the world; it instantly brings me pure joy. Nothing beats my first home-grown tomato of the season. Who has inspired your career the most? Beth Chatto was the first to show me that…

The joy of a compact garden is that you’re right in it, intimately up close to savour every detail. Small spaces demand clarity. You have to be decisive – ruthless even – about your priorities, as it forces you to put away the endless wish list. And if the shape is awkward? Even better. I’d take that over a perfect square any day. Odd angles give you niches and corners, interesting places to squeeze in a seat, plant a tree, frame a lovely vignette or discreetly tuck in something practical. Don’t forget how you experience the garden: not just when you’re in it, but from inside the house, looking out. Understand the conditions, ecology and soil; yes, it’s basic stuff, but it underpins every decision. In a small garden, where…

Charlotte Harris Charlotte co-founded the values-driven landscape design practice Harris Bugg Studio with Hugo Bugg in 2017. She has won three Gold medals at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, as well as Best Show Garden in 2023. Fergus Garrett Fergus was appointed head gardener at Great Dixter by Christopher Lloyd in 1993 and is now CEO of the garden’s Charitable Trust. He was awarded an RHS Associate of Honour in 2008 and an RHS Victoria Medal of Honour in 2019. James Basson James lives in the South of France where he runs Scape Design, a practice for creating sustainable landscapes. The winner of four Chelsea Gold medals, he was awarded Best Show Garden in 2017. Anna Pavord Anna was The Independent’s gardening correspondent for 30 years and is the author…

AGAPANTHUS INAPERTUS SUBSP. HOLLANDII ‘SKY’ Agapanthus inapertus retains a grace and poise that is particular to this species. We grow several here at Hillside, but ‘Sky’ is the tallest, with long stems and tapering flower pods that teeter at around shoulder height. Elegant downward-hanging flowers of pale, sky blue arrive at the height of August, when there is often a pause in the garden. Long lived and hardy with good drainage, though it resents any overshadowing of the strappy basal foliage so grow at the front of the border or with low-growing perennials such as thyme or acaena. AGM*. Height and spread 1.2m × 60cm. Origin Eastern Transvaal, South Africa. Conditions Well-drained, light soils; sun Hardiness RHS H4, USDA 6a-10b†. Season of interest July - August. THALICTRUM SPLENDIDE WHITE (=…

Choosing the planting for a small garden can often be harder than for a large one, as every centimetre of space needs to work hard. To help you figure out the best approach, we asked top designers and a design-savvy home gardener for their top pieces of advice for how to fill a tiny plot with beautiful foliage and flowers. Get it right and you can create outdoor interest all year, make your garden look bigger and invite in wildlife. Don’t be afraid of trees Your first instinct might be that it is best to use small and dwarf plants in a small garden, but conversely, the opposite is true – it looks better to go big and create height and drama. Most people looking at a tiny outdoor space…

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WOMEN AND GARDENS: A HISTORY FROM THE VICTORIAN ERA TO TODAY by Judith M Taylor University of New Mexico Press, £19.99 ISBN 978-0826367839 Highlights the depth and breadth of women’s influence on gardens and landscapes over the past 200 years and highlights many unknown or intentionally ignored facts about women’s contributions to horticulture, landscape design and plant breeding. ABUNDANCE by Mark Diacono Quadrille, £30 ISBN 978-1837830565 Mark Diacono committed himself to a year writing about what he harvested and cooked in a bid to live more fully in the moment. The resulting 80-plus seasonal recipes include such delights as early summer shakshuka, onion seed and oregano flower focaccia, fig leaf and olive oil ice cream, and a Seville orange mojito. THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF PLANTS: ART, NATURE & SYMBOLISM by…

My garden wants to grow brambles and bindweed, to surprise me with sapling ash. What it really wants to grow are damsons. A forest of the things; relics of the rootstock of my neighbour’s long-dead ‘Victoria’ plum. Needless to say, nature and I are not always of one mind. Humans are part of the natural world, set apart by a belief that we’re somehow both outside and above it. Since our ancestors made the shift from foraging to agriculture, we’ve been saying no to nature with every plant we can persuade from the ground. Given our wildlife-friendly protestations, it’s uncomfortable to think we could be gardening ‘against nature’. The discomfort doesn’t make it less true. Despite nature’s intentions regarding what should be growing in our soil, these plans rarely coincide…