by GillianPolley | Jan 22, 2020 | 2020, Architectural Plants, back gardens, berries, Colour, Colour 365 days a year in your garden, colour in the garden, conifers, container growing, containers, Cornus, Cornus 'Midwinter Fire', December, Design, designing your own garden, driveway, Edinburgh, evergreen plants, February, focal points in the garden, front garden, front garden/driveways, Galanthus, garden inspiration, gold, Grasses, gravel, Hamamelis, Hellebores, herbaceous perennials, holly, Ilex x altaclerensis 'Golden King', Iris reticulata, January, ornamental grasses, Pinus mugo 'Mops', Pinus mugo 'Winter Gold', Plants, Sarcococca, Sarcococca confusa, Sarcococca hookeriana var humilis, scent, Skimmia japonica, Snowdrops, spring colour, stalwart garden plants, windy conditions, winter, winter colour, Winter colour and cheer in the garden, winter scent in the garden, winter structure
January is not my favourite month and some years it seems longer than 31 days. But as the month pushes forward it is cheering to see the day light lasting a little longer each day. In my own front garden I am determined to add to the cheer by planting colourful,...
by GillianPolley | Jun 6, 2017 | 'Lelystad' bulb mixture, 2016, 2017, Anemone, April, bees and insects, bulbs, Colour, colour in the garden, Design, Edinburgh, focal points in the garden, front garden, front garden/driveways, garden inspiration, Holland, insects, JUB Holland, Keukenhof Park, long flowering period, low maintenance plants, Mixed bulb planting, Muscari, Narcissus, Narcissus Topolino, Polley Garden Design, scent, shrubs, Spring, spring blossom, spring colour
Inspired by my visit in Spring ’16 to Keukenhof Park just outside Amsterdam and seeing 7 million bulbs in bloom, last October we planted 1000 bulbs in a plant bed in our front garden under some deciduous shrubs. The bulbs we planted were a special mix called...
by GillianPolley | Feb 17, 2017 | 1930's house, 2017, A Linear Focus, Acer, Acers, arts and crafts, arts and crafts garden design, Arts and Crafts style house, box balls, Colour, Design, design balance, drainage, driveway, Edinburgh, evergreen plants, front garden, front garden/driveways, garden inspiration, garden transformation, Grasses, Hellebores, herbaceous perennials, Japanese gardens, low maintenance plants, O-Karikomi, outdoor furniture, Plants, Polley Garden Design, Pulmonarias, scent, shrubs, Sir Robert Lorimer, SUDS, winter colour, winter scent in the garden, winter structure
Designing front gardens and driveways is often challenging. Never mind the practicalities of a car parking space or manoeuvring space for the car or cars (it often takes more space then you think) and access routes from A to B and Sustainable Urban Drainage issues...
by GillianPolley | Dec 18, 2015 | 2015, advent season, back gardens, bulbs, Carex comans bronze, Carex oshimensis 'Evergold', Christmas, colour in the garden, containers, cyclamen, December, Design, Edinburgh, evergreen plants, Festive plant container, focal points in the garden, front garden, garden inspiration, Grasses, herbaceous perennials, Heuchera 'Plum Pudding', livingreendesign, long flowering period, low maintenance plants, Plants, Polley Garden Design, Sarcococca Purple Stem, scent, shrubs, Skimmia japonica, winter colour, winter scent in the garden
Christmas is here, and people are busy decorating their christmas trees and decking their halls, but don’t forget your garden. A festive styled plant container in a position near a door or viewed from a window really cheers up a garden. At plant nurseries and...
by GillianPolley | Jul 23, 2014 | A Day Out, A Linear Focus, Architectural Plants, art in the garden, Colour, colour in the garden, Design, Edinburgh, evergreen plants, focal points in the garden, garden inspiration, Hedges, herbaceous border, herbaceous perennials, Houghton Hall Walled Garden, July, June, Lawns, Norfolk, Plants, Polley Garden Design, scent, sculpture in the garden, soft landscaping, summer
People ask me, “Do you enjoy visiting gardens when you are on holiday?” The answer is definitely “yes”. I can enjoy them as a visitor without the worry of designing them, or worrying how the planting is doing and in this hot weather, are the...
by GillianPolley | Apr 25, 2014 | A Day Out, ancient woods, April, Bluebell Wood, Bluebells, bulbs, Colour, Edinburgh, May, Plants, Polley Garden Design, scent, Spring, spring colour, The Woodland Trust, visit bluebell wood, wildlife habitats
Time to get out and about and visit some bluebell woods – it really is just magical. To find a bluebell wood near you go to The Woodland Trust website at https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/map and type in your postcode. Remember bluebells are a...
