What does sustainable landscaping mean?



The Environment Agency has warned that weather conditions are likely to become more challenging and that we need to make better preparations for coping with droughts as well as floods.

Has the world gone mad, or is it simply a case of human activity disrupting natural systems to the extent that they simply cannot cope with the demand?



Flooded field - this water will eventually soak into the ground,
the way nature intended.  The more hard surfaces we introduce,
the more difficult it is for Nature to cope with heavy rainfall.



2012 saw the wettest drought ever in Britain. Hosepipe bans were in place throughout the spring and summer months, even though rivers were overflowing and homes and businesses were flooded. It was all very confusing for gardeners who postponed major projects while they waited to see what the weather would do next. This, of course had a knock-on effect on plant nurseries, garden centres and landscapers.

Clever use of water and pollinator-friendly plants in the Olympic Park

I'm hoping that 2013 brings more "normal" weather patterns so that the nation's gardeners, possibly even inspired by the spectacular landscaping of the Olympic Park, will be able to create some really sustainable outdoor spaces.

Sustainability is based on a simple principal. Everything we need for our survival and wellbeing depends either directly or indirectly on our natural environment. Sustainability creates and maintains the conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations. In other words, sustainability protects the water and other resources we need for a healthy society.

Phew! That's a bit of a mouthful but basically, what sustainability means for gardeners is that by facilitating natural processes like composting, keeping soil healthy, supporting wildlife and making sure water can soak into the soil instead of being flushed into the drainage systems, we each can do our bit towards helping the environment cope with flooding and drought.

plant a wildflower meadow and you'll attract all sorts of wildlife

So, instead of concrete, use turf......it's more permeable. Instead of wooden fencing, plant a hedge using native species (preferably UK grown); it will create a wildlife corridor and the blossom will help sustain pollinating insects; got a shed? Put a green roof on it to soak up rain water and to create wildlife habitat, hate mowing and weeding? You need a wild flower meadow - even if it's only little the creatures that visit it will fascinate and intrigue you.

Sustainable gardening isn't about hard work, it's about working with nature, not against her. At least that's what I think. What's your opinion?

Is biodiversity too untidy for 21st century living?

Wildlife-friendly garden  or lazy gardener?

The weather today is grey and gloomy, and because I've spent a good part of the last fortnight away from home; 2 days for my son's graduation in Sheffield, a day in London at the steering committee meeting for the Landscape Show, a reception at the House of Commons and of course the Futurescape Show at Kempton Park; the inside of my house is looking rather unkempt.

Now I hate housework with a vengeance and a passion, so invariably, as soon as I pick up a broom, my thoughts begin to wander, and today I'm wondering if our modern day obsession with outward appearances has lead to the demise of garden wildlife.

When I think about life in the western world, it seems to me that in general, we're far more materialistic than our predecessors ever were; more concerned with presenting the right image of ourselves to the rest of the world and, sadly, a tad self obsessed.

Way back in history, gardening for leisure was only for the rich and privileged. Everyone else was concentrating on keeping warm, dry and fed - but not necessarily in that order. As time went on, life became slightly better for the masses. If they were employed, they were generally housed too, but gardens were still only for the wealthier folks. So, it follows that if you had a garden, you were socially superior to anyone living in a two-up-two-down like my Auntie Aggies house in Preston.

Auntie Aggie lived in a terraced house with a front door that opened onto the street and a back door that lead into a tiny paved yard with a privvy but no room for greenery. Uncle Tom used to supplement their diet with veg grown on his allotment. The whole estate was the same, row on row of perfectly decent mill workers houses. If you happened to reach foreman grade, you may have been able to afford a house with a bit of a garden. Maybe grow a few roses...p

Jump forward to the 1950's and low and behold, standards of living have risen for some people and the lawnmower has become affordable. More people have gardens and they make a point of keeping them immaculate so that the whole world knows they are a happy, decent and prosperous family. There'll be a lawn, a hedge, flower borders, possibly a bird bath and it’s crucial that everything is neat and tidy.

By 2012, the family has got wheels – lots of them – and they need a place to park them that is close to the front door and acceptable to the insurance company.  So, the front garden is (very neatly) buried under brick-weave and concrete.  With these wheels, the family can travel – to the retail park, to friends’ houses and to work….and let’s face it; they need to work long hours to raise the money to pay for their home, their cars, their big TV and their brick-weave.  With no energy left at the end of the week, gardening takes second place to more relaxing pastimes and so the back lawn and flower beds are transformed into a low-maintenance deck with a patio area and a plastic lawn.  The hedge is then replaced with a wooden fence that won’t ever need trimming and bingo! very neat, quite attractive, but devoid of habitat.

Having said all that…recent research from the RSPB has shown that urban gardens are much more biodiverse than most parks and communal areas.  So where does that leave our wildlife?  Hungry I suspect.

green roof shed standing in a wildflower meadow

The answer is simple.  Find some low maintenance, but biodiverse ways of bringing green plants into public spaces and private gardens.  Green roofs and mini wildflower meadows really don’t need a lot of TLC and they can really benefit insects, small mammals and birds without making the outside of a house look unkempt or creating a lot of work.  If anything, a living roof on the garden shed or a modern planter filled with colorful native plants will prove to the community that whoever looks after this plot of land is very aware of the importance of biodiversity in the future of our planet and is “doing their bit”

I’m off to temporarily improve the look of the inside of my home…I say temporarily, housework seems like a waste of time when the home is shared by 3 dogs, 2 lively grandchildren, a welly-wearing garden lover and a filthy farmer.  It’s no wonder I prefer to be outside.

Can we have too many bees?

I recently spotted an article in The Independent that raises concerns over the humble honey bee.  No, it wasn't about this summer's awful weather, or about infections being spread by the varroa mite, it was about truly well meaning people and organisations who are doing their best to help the species by setting up urban hives.

The article states that in 2008 there were 1,617 (very precise number) bee colonies in London and the surrounding area and by this year, the number has more than doubled to 3,337; BUT the average honey yield from each hive has dropped - exact figures are going to be released in late october/early november.   The London Beekeepers Association suspect that there may be more bees in London than there is food to sustain them.

That makes sense....I kinda liken honey bees to my free-range chickens.   Jennifer and Jemima are able to mess about in my garden scoffing slugs and bugs all day long, but I still give them proper chicken food...just to be sure that they do have enough nutrients.   In return I recieve more eggs than I can cope with and end up giving them away to work colleagues.

With Bees, making sure they are well nourished must be pretty difficult.  After all, even though they are classed as livestock, they're not fenced in and only the bestest James Bond type gadgets could ever tell the beekeeper what they get up to in a day.

So, should beekeepers also plant flowers?  I think so. If you want to benefit from nature, you should return the compliment by making some sort of contribution.  Whether it be creating a living green roof, planting a wildflower meadow, filling a window box with colourful bee-friendly blooms or donating to one of the many charities that have the land and the resources to do whatever is needed to support these tiny but essential creatures.

PS  Does anyone know how many flowers are needed to support a colony of honey bees for one summer?  I'd love to find that out

plants for pollinators

Take a look at Q Lawns' new video featuring two different ways to encourage pollinating insects into your garden.

Penny Bennett Architects' gazebo with a green roof

Wild flower meadows are lovely, but they're not everybody's first choice.  Living green roofs on the other hand don't affect the way your garden can be used, but they do have a whole heap of benefits for butterflies, bees and householders.
You'll find the video on Youtube by clicking on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVsYVkMl-kk

Angela's top 20 wild flowers; Number 19 is Meadow Saxifrage

I don't know quite why Meadow Saxifrage, or Saxifragia granula is all the way down at number 19, it really deserves to be in the top five of my favourite wild flowers, along with all the other 37 species I like so much.

Saxifragia granulata growing in Enviromat sedum matting

Meadow Saxifrage is on the favourites list because it's just the prettiest, delicate-looking but resiliant little plants to flower early in the year and it always marks the arrival of springtime on the Enviromat field.  

The family name Saxifrage means "stone breaking" because these plants are happy on poor, stony ground in exposed places which in turn, makes them really well suited to green roofing.

Flowering from April - June, these beauties are a source of nectar for butterflies and bees coming out of hibernation.  They're just exquisite!

Native Species from Different Millenia

Last week we took MeadowMat, Enviromat and our Q Lawns' turf to the Creating Landscapes show at Capel Manor College near Enfield to inspire landscapers and designers to include more lawns, more green roofs and more wild flowers in their projects.


oxeye daisy and sorrel look fab with
ancient bog oak stepping stones



The most difficult thing about these shows is knowing how to make a stand more exciting, more eyecatching and more informative than the neighbouring stands and so this time, I asked garden designer Maxine Tricker to help with ideas and I am so so glad she said yes.

ragged robin looks amazing against
a background of bog oak

Maxine used Meadowmat and wild flowers alongside our BogOak to create a show-stopping display.  Inspirational and the most ironic thing about it, is that BogOak was the original English wild wood.  These trees were living in East Anglia at the same time as Stonehenge was being built - fabulous!


Meadowmat at creating landscapes show -
a bit squashed from the journey