Exotic Gardens | Food Forest Design | Wildlife Ponds | Wildflower Meadows | Pollinator Planting | Greenspace Planting
Pollinator Planting
Gardens Of Eden takes a scientific approach to gardening and landscape design; by layering plant specimens we create planting schemes that function similarly to naturally occurring ecosystems. This method reduces the overall required maintenance for the garden but it also looks naturalistic and beautiful. We base decisions for plant selection on scientific literature as well artistic garden design theory, creating the most ecological and/or productive space possible.
Eryngium bourgatii' Picos Amethyst'
Cut Flower - Herb Garden
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Bumblebee Border designed and created in Newquay. This border was designed to benefit pollinators and is inspired by research by Garbuzov M et al in Functional Ecology, Tevi and the RHS. Native and exotic, trees, shrubs and herbaceous perennials have been selected from a pool of plants indicated in the above research to provide benefits to UK pollinators. Some of the best performing plants in different studies were selected and combined in large drifts to create a mass of flowers useful to pollinators. The scheme is particularly colourful and plants such as; Salvia patens 'Blue Angel' and Echinops ritro 'Veitch's Blue' provide dazzling colour to the ecological planting.
Leucanthemum vulgare
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Cut Flower-Herb Garden: Culinary herbs are combined with ecological cut flowers and grasses within prairie-like surroundings. An ecological garden with additional edible and practical functions. A favourite for bees and pollinators. Spot the perennial kale amongst the planting!
Echinops bannaticus 'Blue Globe'
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Its not all about native?
Research undertaken by Andrew Salisbury et al., (2015) indicated that while it can be extremely useful for wildlife to include native plants in our gardens and greenspaces, exotic plants can be useful too.
The best gardens for wildlife actually contain both native and exotic plants, for pollinators in particular. The key is to have as many flowers out for as many months of the year as possible and to also provide open flowers easily accessible to pollinators (Salisbury et al., 2019). By including both exotics and natives in planting schemes, we have a much bigger pool of ecological plants to choose from which can make it more feasible to design planting to be more ecological (Salisbury et al., 2019).
Salisbury, A., Armitage, J., Bostock, H., Perry, J., Tatchell, M., Thompson, K. (2015) 'Enhancing gardens as habitats for flower-visiting aerial insects (pollinators): should we plant native or exotic species?', Journal of Applied Ecology, British Ecological Society
The best gardens for wildlife actually contain both native and exotic plants, for pollinators in particular. The key is to have as many flowers out for as many months of the year as possible and to also provide open flowers easily accessible to pollinators (Salisbury et al., 2019). By including both exotics and natives in planting schemes, we have a much bigger pool of ecological plants to choose from which can make it more feasible to design planting to be more ecological (Salisbury et al., 2019).
Salisbury, A., Armitage, J., Bostock, H., Perry, J., Tatchell, M., Thompson, K. (2015) 'Enhancing gardens as habitats for flower-visiting aerial insects (pollinators): should we plant native or exotic species?', Journal of Applied Ecology, British Ecological Society
