Importance Score: 30 / 100 🔵
Gardening Experts Recommend Four Key Additions for Summer Garden Success
Horticulture enthusiasts are being encouraged to incorporate four specific elements into their gardens to ensure flourishing growth this summer season. Renowned gardening personality Monty Don has collaborated with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) to conceive a resilient lawn concept for the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show. This innovative lawn design minimizes the need for frequent mowing and is specifically engineered to withstand foot traffic, even from pets.
Introducing the “Robust Lawn” Concept
This durable “robust lawn” is characterized by a diverse mix of flora commonly observed in public green spaces, including daisies, clovers, dandelions, and rye grass. Reflecting Don’s affection for his canine companions, the design prioritizes a pet-friendly environment.
Key Components of the Low-Maintenance Lawn
- Daisies: These indigenous perennials are profuse in short turf environments. Typically flowering from March to October, daisies can bloom throughout the year in milder winters, with peak flowering occurring between April and June.
- Clovers: Valuable as green manure, clovers excel in soils with limited fertility. Their rapid growth and nitrogen-fixing capabilities within their root systems contribute to soil enrichment, benefiting subsequent plantings after incorporation into the soil.
- Dandelions: Dandelions are persistent perennials distinguished by a strong taproot. Their flowering period extends from May to October, with the most abundant displays in May and June. While cooler temperatures seem to promote increased flowering, day length has a minimal impact on their bloom cycle.
- Rye Grass: A tufted, fibrous-rooted perennial grass, rye grass is generally considered native and is widespread across Britain. Early rye grass varieties commence flowering in May, with the flowering period of different cultivars continuing throughout the summer months.
RHS Perspective on Practical Pet-Friendly Gardens
Guy Barter, chief horticulturist at the RHS, commented on the design: “Our ultimate dog-friendly lawn is refreshingly simple, comprising only a hard-wearing grass seed blend along with familiar garden stalwarts – daisies, dandelions, and clover.”
Barter further emphasized, “This serves as a reminder that lawns do not need to be immaculately maintained to be ideal for our pets, everyday use, and the broader ecological system.”
Re-evaluating Lawn Aesthetics
Jamie Butterworth, the garden designer who partnered with Monty Don in creating the garden exhibit, shared his perspective: “Despite being showcased at the world’s most renowned flower show, our aim is not a meticulously manicured lawn.”
Butterworth elaborated, “We envision a lawn that embraces a more natural aesthetic, allowing dandelions and daisies to flourish freely – the quintessential resilient, hard-wearing lawn. The less formal, ‘shaggy’ lawn style is making a comeback.”