by GillianPolley | Jan 27, 2019 | 1930's house, 2019, Acers, autumn, autumn colour, autumn colour in the garden, back gardens, box balls, bulbs, Colour, Colour 365 days a year in your garden, colour in the garden, container growing, containers, Copper Mango Ltd, Copper Mango Photography, cyclamen, December, Design, design balance, designing your own garden, driveway, Edinburgh, Euonymous alatus 'Compactus', evergreen plants, February, Festive plant container, focal points in the garden, front garden, front garden/driveways, garden inspiration, garden transformation, garden views, Grasses, gravel, Hellebores, herbaceous perennials, Iris reticulata, January, Japanese gardens, long flowering period, low maintenance plants, March, Mixed bulb planting, O-Karikomi, O-Karikomi gardening technique, October, outdoor furniture, Polley Garden Design, Sarcococca, seats in the garden, shapes, shrubs, Spring, spring blossom, spring colour, summer flowering plants, winter, winter colour, winter scent in the garden, winter structure
How many plants do you have in bloom in your garden in January? You will be astounded to know Tresco Abbey Gardens in the Scilly Isles had 289 on the 7th January. Aah – to have their climate. But even as winter is upon us, in Scotland it is possible to have...
by GillianPolley | Jan 24, 2018 | 're-wilding', back gardens, Colour, container growing, containers, Design, design balance, Edinburgh, evergreen plants, fire pits, front garden, garden inspiration, herbaceous perennials, herbs, indoor plants, insect habitat, insect hotels, insects, meditation, outdoor kitchens, pizza ovens, Plants, Polley Garden Design, Potager, Potager gardens, Raised wooden beds, safe haven, shapes, shrubs, sustainability, Top garden trends in 2018, Vegetable growing, wildlife, wildlife habitats, winter colour, winter scent in the garden, winter structure
‘Haven’ is often a word associated with our gardens. Studies have shown people are healthier and less stressed when they are close to nature, and people are using their gardens to enjoy family life, relax, exercise and mediate in. This trend...
by GillianPolley | Nov 2, 2017 | 2017, a woodland garden and driveway, Acer, Acer palmatum Dissectum Garnet, autumn colour, autumn colour in the garden, back gardens, Cercidiphyllum japonicum, colour in the garden, Edinburgh, Euonymous alatus, Euonymous alatus 'Compactus', focal points in the garden, front garden, Fuchsia Mrs Popple, garden inspiration, Grasses, herbaceous perennials, Kniphofia rooperi, long flowering period, low maintenance plants, October, Polley Garden Design, september, Stipa gigantea
With winter almost on our doorstep, it is a good time to cast a critical eye over your autumn garden and judge if you are making the most of the stunning colours of autumn. This final blaze of colour is a joy to the eye and spirit and with a little careful...
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...