The Gardening Mind by Jo Thompson

The Gardening Mind by Jo Thompson

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The Gardening Mind by Jo Thompson
The Gardening Mind by Jo Thompson
How to choose plants for your flowerbeds and borders

How to choose plants for your flowerbeds and borders

The first steps - inspiration, tips and tricks to help you create gorgeous planting and avoid those mistakes which are so easily made when you first try to design a flowerbed

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Jo Thompson
Jun 15, 2024
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The Gardening Mind by Jo Thompson
The Gardening Mind by Jo Thompson
How to choose plants for your flowerbeds and borders
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Don’t know where to start with planting?

The Gardening Mind is here to help: I’m going to take you by the hand and walk you through designing flowerbeds and flower borders

Just like good underwear, people have remembered the necessity of structure and of the shrub in a planting. A good bra makes all the difference to any outfit.

roses in a garden
A sunny June border

I’ve put together this bed/border planting design course to demystify the whole thing. Island beds, shady borders, sunny patches - I’ll cover as many as I can, so if you have a request for a particular problem spot, let me know

This week, we’re going to be taking the first steps into choosing the first plants for your border, so whatever the weather, wherever you are, get that notebook ready and the kettle on.

If you’d like to catch-up or recap, you can find the first episode of Garden Border Design here. Wondering what the difference is between a bed or border? Confused by all the different styles out there? It’s all explained here:

How to design a flowerbed - making it easy

How to design a flowerbed - making it easy

Jo Thompson
·
June 8, 2024
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Before we get going, the usual reminders and dates for your diary:

  • If you’re coming to this month’s Gardening Mind Meet-Up at Water Lane and you haven’t answered the poll yet, please could you head to the end of last week’s ‘How to Make Your Garden Look Great in June’ post here and just tick if you’re coming and if you’d like lunch?

  • Remember, as a paid subscriber you can join in our Sunday Show Us Your Plots Chat - this is an absolutely fabulous chance to share photos of your garden or a green space near you. Whatever size garden you have - from a pot of herbs on the windowsill, to a park you pass by, to a garden of your very own, and wherever you are in the world, do come and join us - you’ll see a post on the Chat on Sunday starting ‘It’s Sunday 16th June and it’s time to Show Us Your Plots!’

    Each week it gets bigger and better, so come and join in - it’s even easier now to follow the many gardens and comments from all over the world and there’s a note on this at the end of this post

Whether you’ve been a member of this very best gardening community for years, or whether you’re new and just finding your way around The Gardening Mind, here’s a smorgasbord of some recent articles you might like:

  • Did you manage to plant any of these plants I suggested to fill that Main Monochrome Moment - that gap that comes at the end of this month?

    I did actually get round to ordering quite a few the plants I suggested for you, and I’d love to know if you were isnpired to buy any of them:

What to plant in your garden right now for later summer colour

What to plant in your garden right now for later summer colour

Jo Thompson
·
April 6, 2024
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  • This new ‘Common Garden Design Conundrums’ was a hit amongst those of you who want to screen from neighbours:

Garden design challenges: how to create privacy from neighbours

Garden design challenges: how to create privacy from neighbours

Jo Thompson
·
June 12, 2024
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  • It’s not too late to make your garden look great in June, so if your garden is needing a bit of a zhoosh, and you dont know where to start, read this:

How to make your garden look great in June, and a new planting design course

How to make your garden look great in June, and a new planting design course

Jo Thompson
·
June 1, 2024
Read full story
  • Did you decide to leave your grass growing after No-Mow May and are now in Let it Bloom June?

  • If you’re in the UK with the soggiest, breeziest June for a long time, there’s still time to support your plants to avoid them getting totally flattened by the weather.

Border design - the key factor

When you’re creating or revamping a garden bed or border, there’s a key factor to remember before you rush to the nursery or garden centre and fill a trolley with plants. Without this factor, the planting just won’t work, and today I’m going to show you an easy way to do it:

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