Holley Designs - Garden Design

I'm very excited to announce that I am now back in the garden design business.
My master's degree has been completed.

Credit to The Woodland Trust for all the information supplied during this series of posts.

The Woodland Trust is a charity registered in England and Wales (No. 294344) and in Scotland (No. SC038885). A non-profit-making company limited by guarantee.
Registered in England No. 1982873. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/

Tree #5 Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa)

Blackthorn grows as a shrub and can become an attractive tree once mature.
Early flowering, blackthorn is an essential source of pollen and nectar for bees and butterflies like the black and brown hairstreak. Its foliage feeds the caterpillars of many moths while birds nest among the thorny thickets, eating insects and sloes. Blackthorn is quick to mature and doesn’t take long to begin capturing carbon.

Native Trees for a UK Garden
Tree #4 Hazel (Corylus avellana)

When coppiced, hazel can capture carbon for several hundred years – but it only takes three to five years for the first harvest of tasty hazelnuts. Hazel is a fast grower and a favourite among birds, caterpillars, squirrels and even dormice. You’ll have to get in quick before the nuts are all gone!

Native Trees for a UK Garden
Tree #3 Osier willow (Salix viminalis)

Expect a burst of yellow catkins to brighten your outdoor space in chilly winters. Introduced in ancient times, the osier willow has long since benefitted native plant and wildlife species and is naturalised in the UK. Birds enjoy nesting among the branches and its catkins provide an important source of early nectar and pollen for pollinators. Caterpillars of moth species like the lackey, herald and red-tipped clearwing feed on the foliage.

Native Trees for a UK Garden
Tree #2 Juniper (Juniperus communis)

Juniper is a much-loved evergreen that grows as a shrub or small tree. Its hardy nature and year-round foliage allow it to absorb carbon at a steady pace. A popular nesting spot, the juniper provides dense cover for small birds such as goldcrest. The fruit is a favourite among birds including fieldfare, song thrush, mistle thrush and ring ouzel.

Native Trees for a UK Garden
Tree #1 Crab Apple

Crab apple (Malus sylvestris) : The crab apple’s rounded shape is great for casting shade and cooling the air. A trooper in dry seasons, the crab apple is considered drought tolerant. Its leaves are a food source for the caterpillars of many moths. Pollinators enjoy an early blooming season, finding an important source of pollen and nectar from early spring. The fruit is popular among birds like blackbirds, thrushes and crows, as well as mammals like mice, voles, foxes and badgers.

Preferred conditions: The crab apple can tolerate full sun and most soil types – it’s partial to dryness, making it an excellent choice to endure droughts.

Species of wildlife depend on every tree for different reasons. As temperatures rise, water supplies suffer and natural cycles change. Planting more trees increases the chance for wildlife to secure food and shelter during increasing times of trial.

I’m sure you know planting trees can help against climate change. Each tree in your garden will filter the air around it, absorbing pollutants and locking up carbon in its trunk, roots and soil. It can slow the fall of heavy rain and help drink up water from intense storms. It can scatter the sun’s hot rays, giving shade to cool the air and allowing life to thrive beneath.

Small garden, big impact:

5 UK native trees to plant in a small garden
Watch out for the next posts to find out how to plant the right tree in the right place to help combat global warming from home and give yourgarden some wonderful habitat for wildlife.

It may be worth placing netting over where the bulb is planted to avoid mice and squirrels digging up the bulb. A little bit of chicken wire secured with canes or tent pegs can do the trick. This can work especially well if you are planting bulbs in pots. The leaves will easily grow through the wire.

Now they are planted, sit back and wait for the little jewels to appear in your garden next year. To promote good flowering you can feed your bulbs once shoots appear with a liquid tomato feed once a week until flowering has finished and foliage dies down.

Avoid stepping on the earth where a bulb has been placed as this can cause damage to the bulb. If you are planting a variety plants then leave the bulbs until last to avoid standing on them or digging them up by accident.

Tip #6 Bulbs need plenty of water after planting

If your soil is damp, then watering is not essential however if you are in a dry spell after planting, water the bulbs thoroughly to help them settle into their new environment and close up any air pockets that may have been left behind.

Make sure when you plant the bulb that the ‘nose’ is facing upwards; Most bulbs have a pointed end, this is the nose or shoot end, with a small cluster of roots at the other end. If you are unsure plant the bulb on its side. Cover each bulb with soil and gently firm it down with your hand or a rake.

They should be planted two to three times the bulbs depth and one to two times its width apart. Try throwing them down and planting them where they fall, rather than in neat rows.
It might be worth investing in a bulb planter tool to help you get a good depth of hole, and save your back.

Bulbs should be planted in well-drained soil, if your soil is heavy it may need some compost mixed with grit in the planting hole. Some bulbs may prefer sun, others shade, check the labels.

# flowers # weybridgegardens

Tip #2 Healthy bulbs mean fabulous blooms

Make sure that the bulbs are healthy; they should be plump and firm. Discard any that are soft or showing signs of rot. Plant them soon after purchase to avoid poor storage conditions causing damage. If you forget to plant them, (we’ve all done it) then plant them as soon as you remember, don’t wait until next autumn.

Tip #1 Timing is everything

When planting bulbs it is key to think about what time everything will be in bloom and how they will look amongst other shrubs and perennials. Do you want a calm swathe of similar colours or pops of bright clashing colours.

The more the merrier: for a really impressive show plant at least 6 in a group and repeat around the garden. Before planting and during planting there are a few things to check to ensure the best growth of your bulb; look out for my next posts for tips & tricks.

Bulbs have different flowering periods, some will flower for longer than others, some at the end of winter some at the beginning of summer for example;⁠
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Snowdrops – flowers January to February⁠
Daffodils – flowers February to March⁠
Crocus – flowers February to March and some varieties September to October⁠
Scilla – flowers February to April⁠
Hyacinths – flowers March to April⁠
Tulips – flowers between April and May depending on variety⁠
Muscari – flowers April to May⁠
Fritillaria – May to June⁠
Alliums – flowers June to July⁠
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Bulbs to choose for great looking Spring borders⁠
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There are a wide variety of bulbs to choose from that will look great in the borders in spring. They can add a great contrast of colour to the garden. Tulips can offer colours from the deepest purples, to oranges, pinks and white, and they bloom at a time of year where many plants offer muted colours. Others such as Daffodils, snowdrops, scillas, alliums, crocus, muscari, hyacinths and fritillaria offer great colours and shapes to the garden.⁠
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Autumn is the time for planting for Spring & Summer bulbs

Planting bulbs in your garden has to be the most cost effective way of getting colour in your garden. Buying bulbs online or at your local garden centre is so cheap and easy, bulbs costing less than 20 pence. Such great value!

Autumn is the to plan and plant your spring bulbs colour for next spring. If your bulbs need refreshing, or you are adding them for the first time, October is the perfect time for planting spring bulbs!

Check out my next posts to see my hints and tips on what to plant and when they flower to give you months of interest.

# flowers # weybridgegardens

So now I really need to have a tidy, cut back grasses to let the new shoots come through, w**d out the ever increasing wild strawberries to make way for some new additions, reduce my Penstemon by 3/4 to stop it swamping everything else, and hopefully by the time you read this, my big annual tidy will be completed, and some sort of order resumed.

But not too much!

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Our see through bird feeder on the garden office window was left untouched all winter, a failure we thought, but it seems nature takes time, and reflective glass can be confusing. However a year after putting it up, finally this spring it’s become a hit with everyone, even the squirrel on one occasion. Thankfully the wood pigeon is too large, but she picks up the spoils on the patio below, the doves do some sort of contortion to be able to get a seed or two, whilst their mate waits patiently for a turn. Blue Tit, Goldfinch, Robin and Blackbird, have all eventually been brave enough to give it a try, it’s a wonder we get any work done at all, with all the watching we do.
Photo: joseph-vogel

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More mess, means food for the birds

More mess has meant more bugs hiding under things for birds to eat; no deadheading meant more seeds to eat. (Gold finches like Japanese anemones). And as spring moves on, we are watching nest material be collected from twigs to fluffy grasses, being gathered and taken away to hedges, nest boxes and trees outside the garden.
Photo: pexels: Steffi wacker

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