Jo Arnell strips back the foliage to put in the groundwork for beautiful borders

When we look at a beautiful garden border, packed full of shapely shrubs and perennial colour it’s hard to imagine that they haven’t always been there and even harder to imagine that we could create such a thing in our own gardens. Few things (let’s make an exception for Mary Poppins and Father Christmas), appear fully formed and we all have to start somewhere. The soil is the best place to start, as this will dictate the basic growing conditions, but there are other considerations too and it pays to think about these before you start planting. It is daunting if you’re looking at a bare patch of earth right now, or worse; an inherited space filled with brambles and wayward bushes, but time and tide – and all those weeds – wait for no man, so grab your fork and spade and let’s get started.

Adding a mulch in spring will help the soil structure, conserve moisture and help to keep the weeds down

Adding a mulch in spring will help the soil structure, conserve moisture and help to keep the weeds down

A joyful jumble of cottage garden plants

A joyful jumble of cottage garden plants

A lovely combination of spring flowering plants beneath a canopy of trees and shrubs; Annual Cosmos ‘Purity’ is a great border filler

A lovely combination of spring flowering plants beneath a canopy of trees and shrubs; Annual Cosmos ‘Purity’ is a great border filler

A lovely combination of spring flowering plants beneath a canopy of trees and shrubs

A lovely combination of spring flowering plants beneath a canopy of trees and shrubs

Flower Power

Inspired by Chelsea and a local success story, Jo Arnell gives us her tips and tricks for beautiful borders If you have been visiting, or looking at pictures of beautiful gardens and then returning to your own plot in despair,...

Pebble for Your Thoughts

Jo Arnell gets to grips with low maintenance gravel gardening Imagine an eco-friendly garden that is easy to care for, that you don’t have to water, with – best of all – no grass to mow? I’m not talking about...

Veg Out

Jo Arnell unearths all you need to know about planting veg this May May is a fantastic month for growing vegetables. The frosts should have passed (but do watch the weather forecast just in case!), the soil is warm, the...