| Miniature English Garden |
From "Ask DIY"
episode ADI-206 |
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Q: I thought making a miniature English garden with my children might be fun, but I don't know where to begin. Can you help me?
A: (Jessie Mack Burns, Ask DIY Gardening Expert): Those gardens are perfect for kids because everything is just their size! Here's how to make a miniature English garden: Materials:
Shallow wooden "shadow box"
Enough heavy black plastic to line box
Gravel
Well-draining soil
Aquarium rock
Several small or miniature blooming plants such as kalanchoe or passion plants
Miniature props such as wooden benches, fences and arbors
- Line the bottom of the shadow box with heavy black plastic.
- Add a couple-inch layer of gravel for drainage.
- Add a layer of well-draining potting soil (figure A). Because the box doesn't have drainage holes, this will help with any excess water. Leave a couple of inches at the top for the plants and props.
- Using your hands, make a "path" on top of the soil with aquarium rock. It should be an inch or two wide.
- Add some plants. Use young plants of such varieties as the kalanchoe, which has white, red or orange blooms, or the passion plant with its purple leaves. Or use miniature plants, such as the miniature African violet. They are genetically engineered to stay small, so they're unlikely to grow out of the space.
- Set off some of the space by placing a miniature picket fence around part of the soil. You can buy that type of prop at hobby shops and craft stores or raid your child's dollhouse.
- Decorate with a tiny bench under the passion plant "shade tree," or plant an ivy to drape over a miniature arbor.
- To maintain the garden, skip the fertilizer. That way, the plants will stay small. And instead of watering the plants so much that you drown them, mist the soil and plants frequently.
- To stay with the theme, consider using -- or just displaying -- miniature garden tools (figure B).
More Questions for Jessie:
Q: What plants should I use if I want to create an English garden just off my patio?
A: Use the same plants you would for the miniature garden, but step up the size by using the standard (not miniature) varieties or older plants.
Q: I'm looking for information on classic colonial or Georgian landscaping. Where's the best place to get advice?
A: Old-style roses are definitely a favorite from this era. Your local library will have more information, or search the Internet. Also explore brochures and books that come from historic homes and gardens for information. Places such as Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia authentically landscape in this style.
Q: Can you give me some tips on planting and taking care of a bleeding-heart bush?
A: When a bloom dies back, come down to the base of the stalk and snip it off. That will promote new growth and encourage the plant to send out more buds. When you plant a bleeding heart, make sure not to plant it too deep in the soil, or it will rot around the trunk. Nor should you put it in too shallow soil, or the root ball will dry out. Web site resources for Miniature English Garden: English Garden Window Box from HGTV.Com Truly Tiny Garden from Olaves.Freeserve.Co.UK Books: English Formal Garden
By Gunter Mader
ISBN: 185410473X
Aurum Press LTD
25 Bedsford Ave.
London, England WC1B 3AT
E-mail: aurum@attglobal.net Planters of the English Landscape Garden: Botany, Trees and the Georgics
By Douglas Chambers
ISBN: 030054645
Yale University Press (1993)
302 Temple St.
New Haven, CT 06520
Phone: 203-432-0960
Fax: 203-432-0940
Web site: 222.yale.edu/yup
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