Rethinking Shrubbery : For the Busy (or Lazy) Gardener, a New Way to Do Borders
Borders, the planting areas that run along the edges of a lawn or a walkway, are usually filled with annuals, bulbs or, a more recent development, perennials, all of which demand an attentive gardener. A border that is composed mostly of shrubs, however, could be considered a lazy man’s border. It’s not that the owners of this San Marino garden are lazy (they are only part-time residents), but they could be if they wanted to, because, for the most part, the shrubs here can take care of themselves.
The designer, landscape architect Robert Fletcher, has called himself a “shrubbist,” because he finds choosing and placing shrubs the most satisfying part of garden design. Most often, shrubs play the important role in gardens as background material. Without a background of shrubs, even the prettiest flowers tend to get lost in a garden. A yellow flower seen against a stucco wall, or even a wood fence, will not glow as it does when seen in front of a mass of foliage.
In this shrub border, there are plenty of dark-green masses for background--in particular, what Fletcher calls the “Pasadena viburnum,” Viburnum suspensum , which thrives in spite of a population of aphids, spider mites and thrips. When Fletcher began the design, the viburnum was already there, planted to screen the garden from the street just beyond.
In front of the viburnum are many more shrubs--used almost as though they were perennials in a traditional English border--and it is an interesting group for anyone planning a garden. For the major players, Fletcher singles out the grayish Westringia and Pittosporum crassifolium and the bronzy Syzygium paniculatum ‘Compacta’ ( Eugenia ).
Next in importance are the silvery, sweetly scented Elaeagnus pungens , some nandinas with their reddish, bamboo-like foliage, the blue-flowered Alyogyne huegelii , white-flowered abutilons, some unclipped African boxwood ( Myrsine africana ) and an upright form of the common rosemary that grows tall and narrow (bought at the Huntington Botanical Gardens Annual Plant Sale, to be held this year on May 15).
Finally, there are white ‘Iceberg’ roses and a number of tough perennials (some of which are actually small or tender shrubs), including lavender, columbine, coral bells, tall bearded iris and foxgloves. A fast-growing perennial, the rarely used peppermint-scented geranium ( Pelargonium tomentosum ), with large silvery, felty leaves, spots the border here and there to add more color. Even though it seldom flowers, the border benefits from its varied foliage.
And, lest it be assumed that ordinary flowers have been banished from this border, spaces are saved for little colonies of annuals and bulbs, including ‘Blue Bowl’ pansies and stock--not so many that caretaking becomes a problem but just enough to add another level of interest.
