THE GARDEN 'ROOM'
Getting family and friends together in the garden on a beautiful summer's evening is a highpoint in the year for many of us. Stylish alfresco living can be achieved whatever your garden size, from a small urban garden like this one where the wisteria really steals the show (photography & styling by Selina Lake) to a 'zoned' area of a much larger garden.
Sonya Patel Ellis has given us these tips to taking your indoor comfort outdoors.
DESIGN YOUR VENUE
Review your garden sketch from last week to identify the perfect sunny spot to place your seating or dining area. A few hours of daytime sun is also helpful for growing many edible herbs, fruits and flowers.
Choose weather-resistant furniture in neutral colours that can stay outdoors for the majority of the year so your space is always ready for impromptu gatherings.
Style your outside space as you would your living room with cushions and pillows for added comfort. Add lighting for a warm and inviting atmosphere in the evenings with both overhead lighting such as festoon lights, and lanterns and candles for a softer glow. A fire pit is helpful for those chilly UK nights.
Grow botanical. Surround your space with containers full of ready-to-pick botanical ingredients perfect to garnish drinks and salads: try mint, strawberries and borage flowers for Pimms, cucumber and basil for a garden gimlet. If you grow one thing, rosemary is a wonderfully aromatic, container-friendly hardy herb that looks beautiful year round and adds warming, rejuvenating flavour to BBQs and roasted vegetables.
Choose plants for scent or flavour - planters filled with herbs will also provide easy garnishes for drinks and salads.
Zone your area by surrounding it with pots and planters filled with plants to bring nature back into the space. It will create a beautiful backdrop for those occasions where you want to create an inviting and relaxing space. You could also perfume the evening air with deliciously fragrant beauties such as wisteria, jasmine, lilac, honeysuckle, roses and scented geraniums (pelargoniums). Herbs such as sage will scent the air as people brush past. Plus keep pots of lemon balm nearby to help keep mosquitoes at bay.
PLANTS PERFECT FOR YOUR OUTDOOR LIVING ROOM
Now create your moodboard. This will inform your plant selection and keep you focussed on the overall garden style you want to achieve.
CROCUS TIP
Creating a herb and salad planter, from Belinda Cooper, garden designer.
Herbs and salads look gorgeous in pots and make an instant kitchen garden on a patio or balcony. Keep essentials like chives, rosemary and sage by the back door so they're convenient when cooking, along with cut-and-come-again lettuce, rocket or chilli peppers. Edible flowers such as nasturtium will give colour all through the summer. Mix and match pots of different shapes and sizes for an informal look and arrange in groups for impact.
