Guides

Practical guides to planning, planting and spacing a garden border.

• How to plan a garden borderMeasure the bed, work out the sun and soil, pick a style, then plant in three layers. Worked through on a 6 m by 2.5 m south-facing cottage border.
• How many plants does a border needSpace plants at their mature spread, divide the area by the spread squared, and plant in odd-numbered drifts. A worked count for a 3 m by 1.5 m bed.
• Plants for a north-facing borderWhat north-facing means for a bed, what fails there, and shade plants by layer from structure shrubs to ferns, ground cover and early bulbs.
• Border plants for clay soilHow to tell you have clay, whether to improve it or plant for it, clay-tolerant plants by layer, and how to plant without digging a sump.
• A border that flowers all yearA month-by-month plan for a border with something in flower every month, the evergreen frame that carries winter, and the gaps most borders have.