Designing a Landscape for Seaside Garden Success
Successful Landscape Design for Beautiful Gardens by the Seaside
Oct 1, 2008
It is easy to dream of having a garden by the sea and this is possible if certain precautions and sensible planning and planting are undertaken from the outset. There is a range of plants suitable for the seaside garden starting from A with Atriplex Elegans and going right through to Y with Yucca filamentosa.
Seaside Garden Problems
However; there are problems associated with seaside gardening but these can be mitigated step by step. The main problem to be dealt with is the wind. This will be a constant in the gardening year and it will wreak havoc with both young and mature shrubs alike. The second problem is salt spray, another constant. The lesser problem areas will be drought and sandy soil conditions.
Seaside Garden Problem Solving
Wind and Salt Spray: These two problems are interlinked and can be reduced considerably by screening. Natural screening with trees and shrubs is by far the most appealing but trees and shrubs can grow quite tall so chose carefully so as not to spoil the view a few years after planting. The screen or windbreak will become part of the overall garden so it should be planted to look good in the future. A particularly effective method of screening is to have a row of medium to tall trees planted first followed by a row of lower growing shrubs and finished off with dwarf shrubs. This gives a tiered effect and offers the garden wind protection from head to toe. Getting the position of the screen right is important – wait for a particularly windy day and walk around the garden and take notes of wind direction.
Trees and Shrubs for Screening
Some suitable trees and shrubs to use for screening are Olearia Virgata Lineata, an attractive hardy shrub with silver foliage and extremely salt and wind tolerant. Or Olearia Cheesmanii, another silvery green leaved shrub with yellow flowers in the spring. Escallonia is also a splendid shrub for use as a windbreaker. It is evergreen, flowers from June to September and has no problems with salt spray. Griselinia littoralis is perfect for the seaside garden with its stately evergreen leaves and yellow flowers in May. Other good choices are Silver Birch, Eucalyptus and Leyland Cypress.
Man-made Garden Screening
When a natural windbreaker is preferred it is sometimes necessary to supplement it with a man-made screen. This type of screen will give protection to the new shrubs while they are becoming established and must be sturdy enough to withstand the strong winds of the winter months. A man-made screen can be a rustic home-made affair or a trellis structure available from most garden centers. It is important to secure it in place by using stout stakes driven well into the ground. The last thing needed is to have the whole construction collapse onto the new vulnerable shrubs and trees.
Seaside Gardens Soil Problems
Test the soil in the garden with a pH meter. Seaside gardens will tend to have an alkaline soil so ericaceous or lime-hating plants will have to be avoided. However; lime hating plants can be used to add color and variety by planting in tubs and raised beds. Most seaside gardens will be high in calcium and most often the soil will be of poor quality and invariably sandy. These are not major problems as adding good organic compost will improve the soil both in quality and nutrients.
Seaside Drought Problems
Seaside gardens often suffer from a drought problem but this can be greatly alleviated by the water retention capabilities of good organic compost. Homemade compost is perfect for this purpose. It is also eco-friendly and free.
Sensible seaside garden landscaping will ensure that the plants and shrubs best suited to seaside gardens, such as Escallonia and Griselinia, will thrive and flourish.
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