Garden Design

Designing with grasses

February 24, 2014

Grasses should be part of every designer’s palette but many people find it difficult to use them to best effect. I’m talking with landscape designer Christopher Owen about the many ways to use grasses in garden design, such as block planting, using a planting matrix, specimen grasses in pots, or even planting them as a hedge.

Design e-ga MIFGS 2013

Masters of designing with grasses such as Piet Oudolf, Wolfgang Oehme, James van Sweden, Bernard Trainor and Dan Pearson, as well as Australian designers Michael McCoy and Michael Cooke, have been using the unique texture and changing colours of grasses to bring movement and seasonality to their gardens.

Christopher explains in this 4-part series of recordings:

– the important differences between grasses and strap-leafed plants
– how to use grasses and sedges in traditional-style gardens
– using grasses in coastal gardens
– how to create modern-style block and matrix planting using grasses and perennials for a variety of effects from formal to wild
– how to choose the best specimen grasses, including for pots