The Statement Border

Upon recommendation from a wonderful client of ours, I was brought in to re-design a long border that needed a complete overhaul. It is the main statement border for the garden, with views right through the house from the front door, we knew we wanted to make it something very special.

- The Process -

We began removing the large overgrown shrubs, some we decided to keep as we felt they could be rejuvenated with proper care.

We kept a large Pyrcantha which is an excellent shrub for blossom and berries. This year it flowered amazingly as the ground was replenished, less congestion and primarily it wasn’t pruned when the regular tree men came. Leaving its flowering buds intact for a beautiful show.

The border had been planted up many years ago, mainly consisting of shrubs that had become leggy and unenthusiastic.

We wanted to update the retaining wall by replacing the rotten wooden log edging. We went with using treated sleepers that we sorted by planting a secondary, lower border below.

My client fell in love with a sculpture from a local artist. So we began playing with border shapes, including the sculpture within it. I made 3D models showcasing different border shapes to give my client an understanding of the space.

(Below) I created a mood board of plants that would work well in the space, they were carefully selected for year round interest. We used pleached trees to increase privacy and draw your eye away from the neighbouring house.

Planting Board and Planting Plan below.

The border was thoroughly dug through, removing roots and large concrete pieces we came across. Then a lot of mulch was added to improve the soil.

The trees arrived, the client wanted evergreen. I chose Prunus Lusitanica for a more delicate evergreen. We planted them along a line. They will eventually grow into a beautiful green screen.