MATERIALS
PLANTING
TEXTURED PAVING SHRUBS
Hand-made bricks and textured
paving blocks will be big in 2018
believes designer Jane Finlay, with
their irregularities and imperfections
bringing a natural element to small
urban gardens; end-grain oak
blocks replicating original wooden
cobbles, still seen in historic settings
such as Blenheim Palace, are also
predicted to be popular. It’s all about shrubs this year, say designers from the
Society of Garden Designers. We’ll be moving away from
naturalistic perennials and grasses to provide accent and
structure to the garden according to Cassandra Crouch
MSGD, while interest in exotic and unusual specimens will
be particularly prevalent, says John Wyer FSGD. Euonymus
oxyphyllus, an elegant, slow growing shrub from Korea is
becoming increasingly popular thanks to its rich, emerald
green leaves which turn to shades of yellow, bronze and red
in the autumn, and produce a spectacular show of colour in
the summer from its cherry-like fruits.
LIMESTONE
After taking centre stage in James
Basson’s award-winning garden at the
RHS Chelsea Flower Show last year,
Limestone is set to make a return to
the domestic garden this year with
the introduction of harder-wearing
mid-toned stones rather than the
bright white varieties of a few years
ago, reflecting the natural, warm
colour palettes popular in interior
design. Adolfo Harrison MSGD also
predicts a trend towards mixing
different stones together to reflect the
various colours and tones within the
garden itself.
LOW LEVEL WOODLAND PLANTS
A trend seen at the new NEO Bankside development
opposite London’s Tate Modern, low level woodland-style
planting mixing ferns, mosses, anemones and tufted
grasses is something we can expect to see more of in 2018
says designer Adolfo Harrison MSGD, working particularly
well in tricky shaded city gardens.
ARCHITECTURAL PLANTS
Sharp architectural planting contrasting with softer
organic hard finishes, sometimes mixed with country-style
planting to blend sharper elements together, will also be
popular according to Jane Finlay. Plants such as the Sabal
minor (dwarf palmetto) or Chamaerops humilis (dwarf
fan palm) will be popular alongside Tetrapanax papyrifera
‘Rex’ which, with it’s height and 2ft palmate leaves, can
transform even the most humble planting around it in to
something far more exotic says Adolfo Harrison MSGD.
Issue 34 2018 Landscape & Urban Design
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