1 March 2013
A backyard garden designed to
inspire
Darfield landscape designer Ross Baldwin is
hoping his exhibition garden will inspire visitors to the
Ellerslie International Flower Show to look at their
backyards in a new light.
His ‘Out the Back’ garden is
based on a typical Kiwi backyard and is designed to be both
appealing to the eye and functional – two things that Mr
Baldwin believes are critical to good garden design.
The
garden has been deliberately designed in such a way that
people could build it themselves if they wanted to, as money
and time allows. It features a deck with a pergola, a paved
area for entertaining, attractive planting, trees, lawn, a
vegetable garden and garden shed. There is also moving water
and a pond to add to the garden’s visual appeal and sense
of tranquillity.
Mr Baldwin, who has more than 40 years’
experience as a landscape designer, is hoping that people
will look at it in and say ‘I could do that’.
“So
many people have a backyard and don’t know how to develop
it to make it both functional and visually interesting,”
says Mr Baldwin. “You need it to not just look good, but
also function well to fit your lifestyle.”
For example,
he says it is important that lawns are flush with adjacent
surfaces so they are easy to mow and that trees and plants
are selected and positioned logically to provide shade in
the summer and sun in the winter.
“It usually does pay
to get advice from experienced people who’ve done it all
many times before,” says Mr Baldwin.
The key piece of
advice he likes to offer home gardeners is to plant species
that will last many years and perform on a seasonal
basis.
“Many people are scared of planting trees but
there is a great selection of deciduous ones that are easy
to manage and provide seasonal interest, shade in summer,
sun in winter, and attract birds. Home owners don’t have
to plant tussock grasses, cabbage trees, flaxes and hebes
ike they see endlessly on motorways and around most service
stations. Many of the Northern Hemisphere plants and trees
suit our environment well and really flourish here.”
Mr
Baldwin’s ‘Out the Back’ garden is one of dozens of
exhibition gardens that will be open to the public
throughout the course of the Ellerslie International Flower
Show next week.
Follow Ellerslie International Flower Show
on Facebook
Ellerslie International Flower Show will
be held in North Hagley Park from 6 – 10 March
2013.
Tickets for Ellerslie International Flower Show, at
a pre-gate price of $35 for Adult Anyday passes, are
available from the website www.ellerslieflowershow.co.nz, all open
Christchurch City Council Service Centres, Mitre 10 Mega
Stores in Christchurch, Ashburton and Timaru, Terra Viva,
EziBuy Christchurch and Nichols Garden
Centres.
ENDS
Speak Your Mind