Low Maintenance Garden

Working mainly within the London area and nearby counties, we are often faced with clients who do not have the experience, interest or time for a high maintenance garden, preferring something easy which they can just enjoy and with minimal effort.

Of course there is no such thing as a totally maintenance free garden, but the choice of plants is paramount, avoiding those which need a lot of cosseting in order to be at their best, or which grow so rampantly that they require constant pruning, will go a long way towards achieving this goal.

It is surprising how many of my clients initially think that many of the exotic trees and shrubs we use in our designs are going to be high maintenance, until we explain to them that it is much easier to care for say a palm tree for example than a common garden rose which is prone to all manner of fungal diseases or even a rhododendron or camellia with their fussy requirements for soil and shade. Further low maintenance can be achieved by opting for more evergreens rather than deciduous trees and shrubs with their messy autumn leaf drop.

Living in a town garden without side access to the back garden, can make it difficult to employ professional maintenance without entrusting keys and having the inconvenience of lawn mowers and tools carted through the house on a regular basis. In this situation we would always recommend avoiding the highest of all maintenance in the garden, and that is of course a lawn, which needs regular attention, not just in the long growing season, but throughout the year.

Without a lawn and with the benefit of an automatic irrigation system together with careful choice of plants, maintenance can be restricted to just three of four times a year, rather than weekly. Don’t get me wrong, a well cared for lawn can look stunning, but unless you are prepared to have it professionally cared for with frequent attention and cut with a good quality petrol lawn mower, you are best to avoid it and substitute with more patio and planting. Nothing looks quite as unsightly as a poorly maintained lawn which has become more moss than lawn. The only thing I can add to this is that lawns and dogs most certainly do not go together

Garden Designer Peter Phillips | Urban Tropics London