It's interesting reading peoples comments. Lots of negative comments re tropical and Mediterranean plants. I get the point about tropical and those things that don't really belong as far north as the UK or trying to recreate Tenerife from holiday memories. But with climate change and global warming I think Mediterranean plants do have a place here, for example 40 years ago you rarely saw sunflowers growing in gardens, let alone in fields. Now there are whole fields in East Anglia. It's changing as I say and sunflowers are very good for our UK wildlife; just one example. I like Mediterranean plants and Mediterranean style plantings and I do think some of the more hardy plants do have a place growing in Southern England gardens. I've got an olive tree growing in a pot outside in Sussex and it produces olives; they aren't huge but I 'cure' them and eat them and it's fun. The peach tree is less successful but I have hopes for it.
Based in Sussex, I garden to encourage as many birds to my garden as possible.
I don't get "no tropicals" either. Unless you avoid roses from China, agapanthus from S Africa, dahlias from S America, Rhododendrons from the Himalayas etc etc , what's "wrong" with "tropicals"
Although I've seen them in many very lovely gardens , personally I could never give a home to a Greco-Roman semi-draped nymph, .. unless it was very very old indeed, bashed about a bit and covered with lichen ... I have a friend who is a distinguished Roman archaeologist and I can just visualise her raised eyebrow 😉
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
As I've aged I suppose the way I garden & what like has changed quite a lot. I'm certainly not as phsically able to undertake large projects and I suspect age has also made me appreciate things more or perhaps be more content. I suppose gardening is a bit like art - one mans million quid splodge of paint is another mans skip fodder.
With me, it’s not a dislike, per se, of tropical plants it’s just when they look alien and wrong in certain situations, like my remote pastoral landscape, with forests and deep river valleys. It’s also too high, mountainous and cold here for them to look anything other than stressed and miserable. In some respects, they are more suited to the protected environment of the city, but look weird in suburbia or the countryside, to me. I get that someone with Jamaican roots, for example, would want to recreate a taste of home in their urban patch, just as I’m happy to recreate a little taste of an English cottage garden here. I am not a native purist by any stretch, it just has to look ‘right’, hence my earlier reference to a ‘sense of place’. A garden, is, after all, an artificial construct so we should not be too dogmatic about what we plant, if it looks appropriate and thrives.
Emerion, the North of Spain is a big place, the coast is only about 65km from here and tropicals look fine and thrive there in the milder climate, but it’s a totally different world where I live and different again in the alpine environment to the north. The neighbours can’t see my garden at all, I am sure they would be baffled by it!
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
This is a fascinating topic. Hats off to those who are changing the way they garden to accommodate more wildlife. There is nothing more pleasing to me than having blackbirds and robins accompanying me as I garden. I toss them worms and grubs and they do find them. Much more soothing than a plastic buddha! I had a thing against dahlias and chrysanths. for many years - I was secretary to the local Horticultural Society until sadly it was disbanded due to lack of new younger blood joining. Those old boys were fanatic about their dahlia and chrysanth. blooms and that put me off. But now I am totally in love with dahlias (but definitely not for showing) and I have allowed 3 chrysanthemums into the garden. But I draw the line at fuchsias. Never liked them, still don't.
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Unless you avoid roses from China, agapanthus from S Africa, dahlias from S America, Rhododendrons from the Himalayas etc etc , what's "wrong" with "tropicals"
He looks more comfortable sitting the right way up @AnniD
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I'm certainly not as phsically able to undertake large projects and I suspect age has also made me appreciate things more or perhaps be more content. I suppose gardening is a bit like art - one mans million quid splodge of paint is another mans skip fodder.
Hope your blood pressure is okay.
Emerion, the North of Spain is a big place, the coast is only about 65km from here and tropicals look fine and thrive there in the milder climate, but it’s a totally different world where I live and different again in the alpine environment to the north. The neighbours can’t see my garden at all, I am sure they would be baffled by it!