Homes and Gardens: Pretty Edibles Feature
Today I am honoured that my RHS Hampton Court ‘Grow Your Own’ design has been featured in Homes and Gardens this month. The feature also touches on my philosophy, that gardens should not only be beautiful but functional as well. I wanted to expand a little more on this and why the functionality of plant choices in particular is important to me.
I believe having ‘useful’ plants in gardens is important. To me useful plants are ones my clients will use in their lives beyond the garden, such as edibles, cut flowers and herbs. Having useful plants not only helps to reduce my clients’ consumption of outside resources, but they also help to deepen my clients’ relationships with their gardens and by extension nature. As a result, introducing useful plants is part of my process to turn my clients’ outdoor spaces into a meaningful places.
These useful plant choices should serve dual purposes though. They should enhance both my clients lives and support local nature throughout the seasons. When designing I therefore tailor how this ‘usefulness’ is shaped. I do this in my initiation phase by getting to know the client well and as part of my site analysis phase by exploring the local ecology.
For busy town dwellers this ‘usefulness’ can end up being as simple as ensuring there is vegetation to make that all important winter door wreath. This then also provides much needed berries and winter pollen for wildlife. For my larger country clients, it can be anything from a small cut flower patch, right the way up to a full blown kitchen or medical garden, with orchards and the works!
As the 19th century textile designer William Morris famously said:
“Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” William Morris 1880
I say we should apply this motto to our gardens but with a small 21st century tweak…
Have nothing in your garden that you do not know to be useful to you and the planet or believe to be beautiful - ideally both!
As a garden designer, I see it as my job to strive for this ideal, to support my clients to live more sustainably and to help support nature.