5 planting tips for a graphic and modern garden

Opt for inflorescences visible from a distance

Let’s forget for a moment small fragile inflorescences, discreet flowers, restrained, understated, … No!

• Think instead of Allium giganteum, in groups or singly, which stand out from afar thanks to their spherical inflorescences carried to nearly one and a half metres in height.
• Agapanthus are no exception with their enormous white or blue umbels emerging from a clump of long strap-like leaves.
• Once shunned, Kniphofia are making a comeback with new colour ranges for their tall flower spike ranging from red‑orange to yellow depending on variety.
• For a very graphic, even geometric inflorescence: why not plant handsome Apiaceae (formerly Umbelliferae) such as Astrantia, those true little botanical jewels, or Eryngium, with a surprising thistle‑like look and bluish sheen though they are not thistles at all… By contrast Echinops or globe thistles, true thistles with rounded heads.
• Phlomis or Jerusalem sage resemble a Chinese pagoda with their flowers arranged in whorls and in tiers.
• And why not some Buenos Aires verbena, whose verticality and rigidity will strongly contrast among low, airy grasses (see next point).

Allium giganteum, Eremerus (Photo / JM Moullec), Agapanthus

Grasses for a structural massing effect

There are… loads of grasses. Tall, small, supple, rigid, with coloured foliage, with distinctive inflorescences, but they all share the common trait of being wonderfully showcased in a graphic garden. Mass planting of Molinies, Pennisetums or Stipas as they sway in the wind is a feast for the eyes. If you want to plant more imposing, structural grasses, opt for Miscanthus, Panicums, or why not Cortaderias, the famous “Pampas grass” that has returned to our hearts in recent years. Grasses bring unmatched structure and presence to the garden and pair very well with tall-flowering bulbs and many perennials, such as those mentioned above, to which they add lightness and volume.

Light yet strongly present, grasses also offer a very subtle palette of colours

Discover our selection of the finest grasses for your garden in our online nursery.

Feeling lost with so many choices? This advice sheet will help you find your way: Grasses — which variety to choose?

Ferns: striking, sublime and astonishing

Ferns, true relics of prehistory, are fascinating and bring a lovely touch of freshness to the garden. Both delicate and natural, their fronds are unrivalled for adding a striking, graphic touch to a shady spot. Some even have evergreen foliage, such as Aspleniums, Polypodiums, or Cyrtomiums. Others have coloured fronds, such as Dryopteris erythrosora, Athyrium niponicum or the striking Coniogramma emeiensis. Others offer an imposing presence, as is the case for Royal fern or Tree ferns (Dicksonia and Cyathea). Let us not forget Matteucias, whose upright presence is welcome among a tapetum of lower-growing plants. As you can see, choice is wide and will depend on effect you want.

Ferns offer multiple shapes and appearances: ostrich plumes, Aspleniums, giant exotic tree fern

Discover all our amazing ferns in our online nursery.

If you want to know more about growing ferns, read: Ferns: how to plant, care for and grow them.

Play with contrasts of colourful foliage

Colourful, variegated, speckled… Let’s set aside green for a moment and bring other colours into the garden to contrast with more conventional foliage: gold, red, purple and even black. Pairing black and yellow in foliage of Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ and Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ is sublime. Ultimately, the idea is to create strong-contrast combinations by choosing colours so they sit opposite on the colour wheel: red and green, yellow and purple-violet, blue and orange. Guaranteed effect!

Gardens in lime and purple-black hues are very on-trend; if you’re looking for ideas for flowering or foliage in these tones, we’ve put together this ‘inspiration’ sheet: Purple and lime flower border inspiration.

To explain “How to get colours wrong in the garden in six lessons“, Francis Peeters honoured us by writing this charming article.

Ophiopogon, Brunnera ‘Jack Frost’, Berberis thunbergii ‘Admiration’, Choisya ‘Goldfinger’

Don't forget shape contrasts.

Shape contrast is often forgotten but should also be considered when designing a graphic garden. For this, large, broad leaves evoking exoticism of a tropical forest work well, as with some Colocasias or one or two Rodgersias. Conversely, you can rely on plants with a very linear, rigid aspect to play strongly on shape contrast: a handsome horsetail with erect stems such as Equisetum hyemale will work wonders, as will this imposing Elegia capensis or restio horsetail, whose startling look sits between horsetail and bamboo. Spiky, almost “dangerous” aspect of an Aloe striatula will contrast with softness of fine foliage of a group of Helianthus salicifolius.

As you will have understood, you will need to play with very characteristic and well-defined forms: round leaves, straight stems, graphic plants… and make sure to blend them harmoniously to avoid style segregation, spiky on one side, soft on the other. This way each plant will be exalted and “stand out” to catch the eye.

While on the subject of shape, how about dwelling on the “huge” ones, the gigantic plants that attract attention for miles around… Some plants are clearly incapable of going unnoticed, notably Phormium tenax ‘Variegatum’, which throws its large flowering stalks more than two metres high above an imposing clump of linear leaves. Melianthus major or large melianthus is an undershrub (cultivated as a perennial) with a very architectural, exotic habit that easily exceeds two metres in every direction; as does Gunnera manicata or giant rhubarb of Brazil (editor’s note: it almost sounds like a B-movie title: “Attack of the Giant Brazilian Rhubarbs“) with gigantic rhubarb-shaped leaves if soil remains sufficiently cool. All these imposing plants share same characteristic: they provide a strong focal point in garden and therefore become centre of attention in a graphic garden.

Horsetail, Gunnera and Phormium: ultra-graphic forms for a sculptural garden

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