Hartley Magazine

All the latest news, hints, tips and advice from our experts

Gardeners ‘can change focus in 2013’

There are trends in the worlds of fashion and interior design each year, so you might be interested to hear that gardening is no different – 2013 is likely to usher in a host of new approaches that you could adopt yourself to liven up your green space.

Horticultural experts spoke to British newspaper the Daily Telegraph to discuss what they think will be hot in the coming year – once spring arrives.

Stephen Lacey said that while grasses and perennials have dominated planting schemes in recent times, he hopes this year will see a revival of shrubs.

Nursery owner Sarah Raven agreed, adding that she will also be planting trees in her own garden to give it "good bones to develop and mature around".

For gardeners who do not have the room for large trees, a compromise could be reached with tree lilies, as recommended by Matthew Appleby – although it is worth noting they are technically not trees at all, but bulb plants that will reappear each year.

"They reach six feet plus by the end of summer and are great for cutting," he pointed out.

There was something of a contradiction between the opinions of horticultural writers Guy Barter and Anne Wareham when it came to whether or not the trend for wildflower meadows will continue, though.

While Mr Barter said it will, Ms Wareham said she thinks people will start to find wild gardens inconvenient and so will want something a little more structured in 2013.

If you prefer the less haphazard approach, try planting some marigold seeds in trays in a heated greenhouse now. You should have row upon row of uniform yellow and orange flowers as soon as spring arrives.

Finally, there was a particularly interesting tip from Mark Diacono, who predicted that this year will welcome in a focus on edible hedges so gardeners can enjoy "something delicious from their boundary as well as shelter".

If you like the sound of this, why not try a Japanese Wineberry hedge? You can plant bare-root plants – which are related to raspberries – until April and once they are mature, they will produce lots of fruit between mid-July and the end of August.

Elder hedging is another option, as the berries are very high in vitamin C and can be used for a variety of things, including wine and cordial. Again, you can plant it until April as a bare root and you should be rewarded with fruit each summer once the plants are mature enough.