Sitting pretty

Article by: Gareth Salter
Publish date: 10th March 2010

With the first hint of spring, even non-gardeners are tempted outside. But, if your garden’s little more than a few dreary slabs, you may find your enthusiasm for the natural world fading fast. And that’s a great shame, because even the most lacklustre gardener can create somewhere rather special.

Setting the scene
I think the first thing anyone should do when creating the garden you’ve always wanted is to make sure there’s somewhere lovely you can relax. Hard work deserves a reward, so you should be able to sit and enjoy your handiwork in attractive surroundings. In most gardens it makes sense to create some privacy, because few of us liked being overlooked, so why not enclose part of the terrace with a pergola? It’s the most effective way of creating a hideaway and needn’t be expensive, with ready-made kits available from garden centres. Alternatively, if you enjoy DIY, then save money by making your own, using tanalised wood from a builders’ merchant. Plant leafy climbers at the base of the posts and encourage the stems to scramble across the wooden supports above your head and you’ll enjoy the cheering rays of filtered sunlight beneath.
If the terrace is large enough, make it more interesting by dividing it into different areas. Plain wooden trellis is cheap - choose thick rustic types rather than plastic or expanding versions because they look better and are much more reliable, and plant an evergreen climber such as Trachelospermum jasminioides alongside.
Although this climber costs more than many others, it’s one of the prettiest you can buy, producing a colourfu l screen of red-tinted green leaves all year round and powerfully scented white flowers during summer.

Splashing out
Now that you’ve made the seating area more intimate, improve the atmosphere further by adding water. The sound of water splashing on pebbles is immensely calming and I always include a water feature in my designs. Even still water can prove relaxing - a dark moonlit pool has a mystical quality that encourages reflection. Although few of us can enjoy the therapeutic effects of crashing waves near our garden, we can all line an old half barrel with black polythene and fill it with water. Use rain water and you’ll be amazed at the wildlife it attracts. If you like the lush planting you find beside a stream, then extend the theme by filling nearby containers with hostas, sedges and cyperus. You can even plant a few marginals in the barrel itself, using baskets of aquatic compost. Remember to raise such plants up a little by placing them on bricks around the edge, because they thrive when growing in a few inches of water. Floating oxygenating plants will keep the water healthy, while a dwarf water lily will add style in the centre.

Scenting the air
Although sight is the most powerful of our senses, perfume can have an equally dramatic effect on how we feel. The scent of a once-familiar plant instantly transports me back to my childhood because I shared many hours with my beloved grandmother, whose passion for gardening led to my choice of career. While there are hundreds of scented plants to choose between, one of the most reliable is lavender. Given a sunny position and well drained soil, its blooms provide a wonderful aroma all summer, something the leaves continue to do whatever the season. Keep it in shape by removing the flowering stems once they’ve faded but avoid pruning back into the woodier stems beneath.

Sight lines
Now you’ve created a relaxing environment, it’s essential you add a focal point. Inside, I love rooms that revolve around a fireplace and it’s the same in a garden. Fire baskets, chimineas and braziers make great centrepieces and not only look spectacular when lit, but also warm you on chilly evenings, thereby encouraging you to spend more time outside. Alternatively, you could try a well-placed statue, hiding it within the trailing stems of an evergreen climber or a driftwood sculpture surrounded by creeping plants. Both can be placed at one edge of a terrace and used as a way of linking it with the rest of the garden.

Accessorise
While the hard landscaping and plants are important, it’s how you decorate a terrace that really makes the difference. A popular addition for many gardeners is a windchime. Although you can buy them easily enough, you can also make one using old pieces of cutlery. Simply heat the prongs of a fork in a gas flame and bend them outwards in different directions. Use this as the central support from which you can suspend spoons using clear nylon line. Suspend the spoons on different lengths of line so they can knock gently against each other. Alternatively, hang forks in their place, bending their prongs round decorative glass beads.

Lighting the way
Another inexpensive way of dressing a terrace is by lighting it with candles. I collect old jam jars and, once I’ve washed them out, suspend them with string from the branches of a tree. Then I place T-lights inside and enjoy the flickering flames. Collect momentoes while on holiday and use these as accessories too. Shells make a charming mulch around containerised plants and bring back happy memories, as do shiny pebbles and small pieces of slate. Twisted willow stems dressed with fairy lights are another clever way of bringing a terrace alive.