Planning a border for year-round interest

My back garden border at its peak in late June.

That phrase ‘year-round interest’ is the holy grail of gardeners. We all want a garden that gives us something to look at every day of the year, and with careful thought and planning, it is perfectly possible - although you also have to learn to appreciate the coming and going of the seasons and adjust your eye accordingly. There is always going to be a peak - and in my garden it’s usually around the end of June, beginning of July - but the point is to watch it coming and going, and appreciate that there are many seasons-within-seasons, not just the four main ones. Using the example of one of my own garden borders, I thought I would take you through the planning process to demonstrate how I came up with a planting plan that would take me through the seasons, from the earliest spring bulbs to mid-winter seed heads. 

BEFORE YOU START

When I created this border, I started with a blank canvas. If you are thinking of revamping an existing border, I would suggest it’s better to completely dig it up and start again. If you do this in autumn, when the existing plants are going into dormancy, you can lift and divide whatever you want to keep, and incorporate the plants into the new planting design. Autumn is also generally a good time to plant perennials - you don’t get the instant gratification as they will die back soon after planting but they will establish a good root system over the autumn and winter and come back strong in spring. Also consider the aspect of your border and the soil conditions. If you have a south facing border, you’ll know it’s going to get sun most of the day. If it’s north facing, it will be very shady. It sounds simple, but you really have to put the right plant in the right place, and to do this you have to know a bit about what conditions the plant needs. You also have to think about soil. If you have a very light sandy soil that won’t keep the moisture or nutrients in, then adding organic matter gives it more body, acting like a sponge. If you have a very heavy clay soil, adding organic matter can make it easier to work, breaking up the dense particles and making it drain better. So before you start planting your border, dig it over, remove all the weeds, and add a load of compost. And we’re not talking one barrow-load – for a border four metres long by two metres wide, you probably need at least a barrow-load per square metre.