By Mari Sciarappa
Take a step outside the concrete comfort of the home and feel the crisp, soft grass beneath you feet. Inhale the sweet scents of lilac and rose that fill your nose and let the cool breeze flutter past you. Take a step into wonderland.
The garden is not simply an addition to the home space. Creating and maintaining your garden may be a daunting task, but with these innovative new garden trends, it’s well worth the effort.
When it comes to innovative new garden trends, the industry seems to agree on one thing – green gardens are dominating the trend agenda. Most people are veering towards the environmentally-friendly, but more importantly, water-wise aspects.
Tim Horn from Abacus Gardens says: “This includes indigenous plant choices, recycling through compost production, and the use of invader plants such as wattle trees in the making of trellises and archways. Further green garden endeavours include organic compost, fertiliser and pesticide implementation in your garden. Water-wise gardens are ideal as a green garden, and to obtain this you can include elements such as grey water recycling, drip irrigation, weather stations, and mulching to reduce evaporation, to mention a few water optimisation routines.”
Tracey Riley from Eco Balance Landscapes says her customers are “very aware of the impact of climate change in their gardens”, and agrees that it is important to have a water-wise, low-maintenance, indigenous garden.
She adds that the latest trend that she is noticing is that people are embracing rain harvesting.
Of course, decor aspects always add a little something extra to the garden. Artists and sculptors in South Africa are radiantly talented in this regard, and you would be doing your landscape a disservice by ignoring such artistic aspects.
Heidi Hadaway believes that “the garden is a very personal projection of your own love for the environment, a haven where you can dream and escape the humdrum of everyday pressures”.
Sculptures, along with water features, can enhance any garden tremendously. Smart and green LED lights, supplied by Robert Thomson also augment the garden by allowing light to have various effects, such as that of a flickering candle, and they still maintain eco-viability.
Innovative designs of planters also complement the garden, and Fiona Richardson of Styler Products says that “by purchasing a good quality planter, you are making a good investment – once you tire of the colour or effect, the surface can be redone to suit the theme”.
Andrew Seagreen from Silvagreen Koi believes that “water has become a key element in the design of any garden”.
“Planning is essential for having the desired outcome to any garden. A maintenance plan should be negotiated with regards to maintaining a garden particularly with a water feature, and especially with Koi fish,” concludes Andrew.
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