Climate resilience

Gardeners are now working with more extremes of heat and rain, and generally more erratic weather. Gardens designed today needs to adapt and anticipate the changing climate and work with it. Different zones of the garden will have certain characteristics like shade or full sun, free draining or tending toward boggy which can be avoided or exploited. Some zones may need to be adapted by creating free draining raised beds or adding organic matter and mulches to the soil to help retain moisture. Choose plants wisely with their needs in mind. Rosemary and Lavender will thrive in full sun and cope with heat and poor soil but won’t tolerate their roots sitting in water. Some plants like Echinacea and Salvias can thrive in dry weather but readily tolerate seasonal wet periods. And Hostas love shade and damp but then so do slugs who now survive the milder Winters which all requires some planning around how to attract the slug eaters – hedgehogs, frogs and toads and birds.