Planting Recipes
Mediterranean Moods
Choose the sunniest spot in the garden, away from cold winds, and select plants reminiscent of Mediterranean vacations: irises, grasses, euphorbias, and evergreen shrubs, such as olearia. Add herbs, like rosemary or sage, and bright-flowered bulbs, such as alliums. Terra-cotta pots planted with more tender species, such as succulent agaves, will help reinforce the Mediterranean feel.
Border Basics
- Size: 10 x 10 ft (3 x 3 m)
- Suits: Grasses, neat evergreen shrubs, irises, bulbs, herbs, succulents, semi-tender plants
- Soil: Any free-draining
- Site: Sunny and sheltered, ideally by a wall
Shopping List
- 3 x Iris ‘Jane Phillips’
- 1 x Olearia x haastii
- 3 x Euphorbia characias subsp. wulfenii
- 5 x Allium hollandicum ‘Purple Sensation’
- 1 x Anemanthele lessoniana (Stipa arundinacea)
- 1 x Bergenia cordifolia
- 2 x Ballota pseudodictamnus
Image: Example of Mediterranean Moods Plants
Mixed Herb Tapestry
Well-planted herb borders should delight the senses: not only are they attractive to look at, but the aroma of foliage and flowers provides an extra element of interest, and some herbs can also be used to flavor food. Many have variegated or silver leaves, so they are still attractive when out of flower. Try also to include some evergreen herbs, such as lavender (Lavandula) or rosemary (Rosmarinus).
Border Basics
- Size: 6 x 6 ft (2 x 2 m)
- Suits: Culinary herbs, such as thyme, oregano, marjoram, sage, chives, rosemary, and also those with more medicinal properties, such as lavender and feverfew
- Soil: Any well-drained, fairly poor soil
- Site: An open site in sun, but not too exposed to cold
Shopping List
- 10 x Origanum vulgare ‘Polyphant’
- 5 x Lavandula angustifolia ‘Twickel Purple’
- 10 x Thymus doerfleri ‘Doone Valley’
- 10 x Thymus x citriodorus
- 10 x Origanum vulgare ‘Aureum’
Image: Example of Mixed Herb Tapestry