A Walk Through the Walled Garden
By Jane Gardener — April 10, 2025
Step through the gate and discover a meadow of beds, clipped hedges, and fragrant pathways. This walled garden is a lesson in calm design and seasonal planting.
The first thing you notice is the structure. Long, simple lines and clipped borders give space for seasonal colour. By combining perennials with edible crops you get a productive and pleasing composition that changes through the year.
I like to design paths that invite exploration. Use gravel or compacted soil, and add a bench at the junction to pause and take in the planting.
Quick Tip
Plant spring bulbs under deciduous shrubs for an early display before leaves fill out.
Designing for year-round interest
Think in layers: structure (shrubs and hedges), framework (perennials and grasses), and punctuation (annuals and bulbs). Evergreens and textured foliage carry the garden through quieter months.
Maintenance is part of the plan. Keep beds tidy with seasonal tidy-ups rather than heavy pruning, and encourage wildlife by leaving habitat piles in out-of-the-way corners.
Want to create your own walled haven? Start small: a raised bed, a small hedge, a single path. Grow what you enjoy eating and seeing — the two often match up nicely.
Garden writer and host of The Veg Gardener Show. Jane shares seasonal advice and practical projects for small spaces.
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