Garden Designer & Plantswoman | Bel Grierson | Loughborough, Leicestershire
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    • Contemporary Country Garden - Stanford on Soar
    • Country Garden - Rothley
    • Plant Lovers Garden - Shepshed
    • Large Family Garden - Burbage
    • Gravel Garden - Rothley
    • Family Garden - Ashby de la Zouch
    • Sloping Garden - Ashby de la Zouch
    • Long Narrow Garden - Shepshed
    • Plant Lovers Paradise - Ragdale
    • Contemporary Cottage Garden - Loughborough
    • Formal Front Garden - Loughborough
    • Kerb Appeal Front Garden - Ashby de la Zouch
    • Traditional Kitchen and Formal Garden - Loughborough
    • Cool Colour Palette Planting Scheme - Melton Mowbray
    • Country Garden Planting Transformation - Little Dalby
    • Wildlife Pond Project - Loughborough
    • Country Style Front Garden- Fiskerton, Nottinghamshire
    • Curvaceous Country Garden - Blaby
    • Rural Country Garden -West Haddon
    • Contemporary Country Garden - Billesdon
    • Farmhouse Country Garden - Market Bosworth
    • Country Garden Redesign - Rothley, Leicestershire.
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Advice Hub

Garden Inspiration, Expertise and Advice

Planting up Pots for Summer Colour - Shrubs

16/5/2019

 
Erysimum Bowles Mauve PlantErysimum Bowles Mauve
​The perennial Wallflower – Erysimum is a fab plant for colour and it flowers for such a long time with no need for tricky deadheading.  E. ‘Bowles Mauve’ is rightly a firm favourite amongst gardeners with its bright mauve flower spikes and glaucous evergreen foliage. One trim after it has finished flowering and that’s it.  Erysimum come in lots of colours so there’s yellow, orange, deep red and pinky-apricot versions to try too.
Lavender is a must for any garden and it survives very well in pots.  Many gardeners struggle to grow it in our region due to our heavy soil, but in a pot with free-draining compost it will thrive (use John Innes no.2 available from garden centres/nurseries).  Good varieties for pots include ‘Munstead’ and ‘Hidcote’ which are both traditional English varieties, or you could try French lavender varieties with their flirtatious butterfly tops.  
Phormiums are back in fashion and rightly so with their striking foliage and grand stature. Used on their own in a pot or surrounded by smaller grasses they will provide colour all year round. Or combine them with bold annuals like begonias for a tropical look. ​​

If your planting needs a splash of colour or you’re looking for garden design ideas I offer a tailor made service from consultations to full garden rejuvenation projects.  Give me a call to discuss your requirements or check out my website for more details. Tel. 07506 750250  or get more info about Garden Design Services  or  Planting Design.

Bel Grierson

Expert Plantswoman and garden designer, Bel has 20 years experience in Horticulture and loves to share her knowledge and enthusiasm with those with gardens large and small

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June 2019
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Planting up Pots for Summer Colour - Perennials

16/5/2019

 
Scabious Ritz Blue
Scabious 'Ritz Blue'
Continuing on from my previous post about selecting annual plants for pots to give summer colour in the garden, i often use perennials plant too. These will happily survive in pots for several years if given the right care. I'm planning a future post about making the post of your garden plants so check back soon....

Perennials & Grasses for Summer pots
Perennials offer a more long-term solution, often looking good for several years before they need revamping or moving on into the garden.  I have several pots which contain a mixture of perennials to give colour on and off all through the year.  My favourites are the Hardy Gerberas and Hardy Osteospermum like O. ‘Tresco Purple’which will reliably flower from June onwards, rest during the winter and then start again the following spring. For small post in a sunny position, Scabiosa shown in the picture are perfect as they flower for months on end with little care.
Along with the perennials I plant grasses like Carex ‘Evergold’, Ophiopogon nigrescens (the black grass) and Festuca ‘Elijah Blue’. These all give evergreen colour and texture.  For the trailers I use Thyme or Ajuga (Bugle) for evergreen foliage and colourful flowers – usually available in the alpine section at the garden centre/nursery.

​Shrubs can also be planted in pots for summer interest. In my next post i'll be suggesting a few to give summer colour to the garden.

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Planting up pots for Summer Colour - Annuals

16/5/2019

 
Spring has well and truly sprung and summer is fast approaching.  I’m busy helping clients with planting schemes, gardening advice and border rejuvenation all helped by the warm sunny weather we’ve been having.  The nurseries and garden centres are brimming with lots of fresh plants to tempt us, but which ones are best for brightening up the patio in summer?
Nemesia
Nemesia
Trailing Geranium
Trailing Geranium
Verbena
Verbena
There are several ways to bring colour to areas around the house or patio and it doesn’t have to be all about deadheading high maintenance annuals!  I love a pelargonium or too and i’m rather partial to trailing plants like Verbena so I create a few pots which are purely about the fresh vibrancy these bring and then the rest of my pots have a more long lasting planting to give colour all year...
​


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    Author: Bel Grierson

    Expert Plantswoman and Garden Designer with 21 years experience in horticulture.  Bel loves to share her knowledge and enthusiasm with those with gardens large and small.

    Looking for advice on budgeting for a garden transformation? Check out these articles:
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    Want to know what's included in a design package? Take a look at these articles for more info:
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We are absolutely delighted with our beautiful new garden designed and installed by Bel! We had an unusually shaped garden which we didn't have the knowledge to handle, but at the same time had quite specific ideas of what we liked and disliked. Bel listened to our ideas and the challenge didn't phase her at all! The preparation of the the soil by her team, and the planting of the garden by Bel herself over three days couldn't have gone smoother. We would highly recommend Bel in terms of her expertise, conscientiousness and friendly, easy going personality and we can't stop looking at our amazing new garden!

Mrs Prist, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire

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"Bel is brilliant. Easy to work with. Lots of ideas and plans but great at listening and quickly tapping into what you like, want and need. She has bags of style with a healthy dose of practicality and is 100% reliable. Totally recommend." ​

Mrs Munden - Thrussington, Leicestershire

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"Bel delivered professional advice in a friendly way after she had established what her clients wished to achieve.  All in all - it has been a pleasure to work with her"

Mrs Harrison - Woodhouse Eaves, Leicestershire

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"If you are looking for advice on your garden or a new designs then look no further than Bel Grierson. We have used her on several aspects of our garden to lower the maintenance and update the planting with spectacular results. Bel is easy to work with and is totally in tune with all our requirements."

Mr Stapleton - Rothley, Leicestershire

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"Bel has delivered a delightful garden with a design that has transformed a shallow plot surrounded by fences, into a garden full of interest.  Bel listened carefully to our concerns and gave her total attention to each step of the way." ​​

Mr & Mrs Bayley - Loughborough, Leicestershire

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​​"Our 20 year old garden was looking tired and boring. No colour and a mishmash of plants that were past their sell-by date. We had no idea what to do to rescue the situation as we knew very little about what plants would do well. Then we found Bel. Our garden is transformed; beautiful colour that just keeps coming all through the year, easy maintenance and a joy to sit and look at with an appropriate glass in one hand. Bel interpreted our thoughts perfectly and has produced an extraordinary result. She is patient with non-gardeners, knowledgeable and highly professional. Not afraid to get her hands dirty and endlessly helpful. I simply cannot recommend her too highly."

Mr & Mrs Benussi - Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire

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"Bel redesigned and planted our garden this summer. It has transformed it from dark and dingy to a fresh open space. Bel is a pleasure to work with, friendly and helpful, full of ideas and always ready to listen to what you want and find the best way of delivering it. Recommended!"

Mr Goodman - Loughborough, Leicestershire

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​"Bel provided good advice and warm, friendly and professional support at all stages of our garden transformation. Her knowledge about plants and her design ideas gave us confidence from the outset. We are delighted with the result, and now look forward to enjoying our new garden in the months and years to come."

Mr Corner - Rearsby, Leicestershire

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"Bel has recently redesigned a large area in my garden which was previously a 'wilderness'. I was very pleased with the design that she came up with - it was clear that she had paid attention to what I had said I wanted and understood my style. Great communication throughout the process and now that the planting is finished I am looking forward to next spring and watching it develop."

Mrs Phillips - Ratby, Leicestershire

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Thank you very much Bel for your design to renovate our back garden. It’s been great to work with you, we really appreciated spending time with you to hear your ideas and develop those with you for a new vision for our garden. We love the pond and wild at the back of the garden and the new plants you’ve sourced have all settled in very well and we are excited to see how they will grow!

Mr & Mrs Adshead, Loughborough

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For more Reviews of Bel Grierson Garden Design Limited see Google Reviews
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Bel Grierson Garden Design Limited
Registered Address: C/O Chesterton House Accounting Services LLP, 2-3 Rectory Place, Loughborough, LE11 1UW

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