Gardeners are missing out on interesting shrubs because they are not easy to sell in a garden centre, says horticultural expert Andy McIndoe.
Plants that don’t have immediate pot appeal or won’t fit into a Dutch trolley are being sidelined, giving growers restricted choice.
“As gardeners we need to ask ‘What are those plants that are really good garden plants, rather than good garden centre plants?’” he says.
He cites Cornus ‘Porlock’ as an example of a garden worthy shrub with a long season of interest that is difficult to find because it looks insignificant when young.
“It shows how influenced we are by the appearance of plants.”
Rosemary is another underrated plant that is rarely sold outside the herb section and which he believes is better than lavender as a long term plant.
The former managing director of Hillier Nurseries, who led the firm to 25 consecutive gold medals at the Chelsea Flower Show, was speaking at the first lecture hosted by Allomorphic in Stroud. The talk was based on his book, The Creative Shrub Garden, and set out to show how shrubs could be used effectively.
“Shrubs are incredibly versatile plants and can shape and influence in a much greater way than any other type of plant material,” he said.
“Shrubs can provide colour and interest in all layers of the planting picture.”
When it comes to putting shrubs together, Andy advises keeping it simple and starting with the foliage.
“We’re all very much bewitched by flowers but they are very much an ephemeral pleasure.”
He outlined planting trios covering a green-and-white theme, one in sunset colours and another in classic pastels.
Different seasons were also covered with autumn tints and shrubs grown for colourful winter stems.
“You can have just as much colour in winter, if you choose the right subjects.”
Woven through the good-humoured and lively talk were snippets of horticultural advice: using vinca or ivy under Cornus sanguinea as a foil to the stems; planting lavender slightly higher on heavy soil; feeding container-grown box, if it is turning coppery.
Pruning, topiary, what to grow in a pot and how to balance colour in a border were all covered and gardeners were urged to forget the idea that shrubs were something “that gets far too big for the space and challenging because you constantly have to cut it back”.
“It’s the bed that’s too narrow not the shrub that’s too big,” he observed.
Gardeners, he believes should be adventurous and not be afraid to replace or move things.
“If it pleases you, it’s right. If it doesn’t, do something about it and change it.”
• The next Allomorphic lecture, The Working Garden, will be a practical look at gardening by Benjamin William Pope, head gardener at the privately owned Trotton Place in Hampshire. Details: Allomorphic
• The Creative Shrub Garden by Andy McIndoe is published by Timber Press, priced £20.