GREEN PEACE

Working with all the different hues is much like choreographing

Singers Tom Jones and George Ezra are many generations and genres apart, but both sing passionately about Green, green grass.

Green green, greener still on the far side of the hill — this song by Trini Lopez was a favourite of my pretty aunt Chris who loved to party.

And what’s the secret behind the Green Door — a mystery. What we do know is they do laugh a lot behind it.

Green is evidently the thread through much of life’s fabric for humans, nature and manufactured pieces.

This is the colour that is everywhere and has different associations for whomever.

It’s a necessity for much to thrive. This is especially so for plants.

The green pigment in them — chlorophyll — is the basis of its life and together with sunshine makes food for all vegetation to survive.

As a colour it imbues a sense of calm, peace and hope. It also makes a path through our national flag.

An all-green landscape is comprised of much more than a single shade.

For there are many varieties of green and when presented together, look wonderful.

There are more shades of green than any other colour so it makes sense to use it in all its variations to create a stunning landscape of just greens.

If gardening teaches you anything it shows you how to “look”.

Notice the collection of greens in gardens. Look at their leaves and stems — they could be grey green, deep green, lime green, pale green, green fading to autumn colours, velvet green, variegated green, “wetlook” green, shiny or furry green.

Some shades are cool while others are warm.

The biggest work in a garden is to create a compatible marriage of disparate colours.

As a lawn, it holds together, as does a carpet in a living room, all the elements which you like to arrange in your garden.

In nature’s box of greens there are those that blend, that stand out and those that enhance their companions. Some are gentle. Others are brash.

This impression depends a lot on the shape and size of the leaves. Also, how they affect a scene.

A maiden hair fern with its delicate, almost see-through foliage, contrasts with the big bold leaves of the delicious monster’s bold forms.

Wispy grasses provide a teddy bear texture while the huge fronds of strelitzia nicolai give the impression you are in a tropical jungle where at any moment you may expect a troop of monkeys to swing by.

Planning the green landscape is much like choreographing.

Each has its own dance as a reaction to the elements and surroundings.

Some plants make a bigger impression than others which might play around gently trailing along the ground with their fussy little leaves.

Instead of flowers for interest, foliage offers varying textures, forms and colours.

Textures may be spiky, fuzzy, fleshy, waxy, rough or smooth.

The smooth texture of the camellia leaf, spiky leaves of the agave or bromeliad, fuzzy foliage of lamb’s ear or Dusty Miller which feels silky to the touch, fleshy leaves of succulents and asparagus ferns’ soft needle like fronds.

Forms may be as bold as agave attenuata, cannas and different cycads.

In contrast, choose some with wispy fine fernlike leaves such as artemesia and ornamental grasses.

As well as offering a dramatic form, New Zealand flax provides a change in colour and may be used as an accent plant.

Phormiums have an equally dramatic form and are grown for their long strappy, blade-shaped leaves.

Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) grows tall. Its triangular shaped stems support heads of grass-like fronds introducing lime green to the foliage scheme.

Tough plants with variegated foliage include Dianella tasmanica “variegata” which has striped green and cream foliage.

Hen and chicken is drought resistant and is equally valuable for its striped foliage.

Ground covers such as the lamium species have interesting leaf shapes of a greyish green colour and do well in light shade.

Lamium maculatum spreads a covering of silver green leaves beneath shrubs and taller growing plants.

Creeping Jenny groundcover’s yellowy green foliage brings light relief to shady spots.

The above are merely ideas. There are many more options from which to choose.

See what looks good at the nursery especially with attributes that will satisfy your particular garden environment.

Tips on starting out

● Select plants that thrive in your area taking into account the different growing conditions of various areas of the garden. Or perhaps you would like to just have a shady section of the garden in just green.

● You will need a strong focal point in the scheme of things such as a plant with distinctive foliage or a fountain surrounded by plants that complement or highlight it.

● After identifying the function of each space install a suitable planting around it.

● Hedges and topiaries will lend the opportunity of having shapes you can control and use to influence the landscape.

● Tall plants may be employed to screen off an unsightly view.

● Trees provide the backbone of the planting. Select them wisely.

Perhaps choose deciduous trees whose leaves change colour and add interest through the seasons.

If there are existing trees neaten them up by removing the lower branches or any that detract from the whole shape.

● Keep your lawn in a healthy state by removing weeds which is especially easy to do now after the rains which softened the soil.

Dedicate a certain time of day to weed pulling. You won’t be disappointed with the results.

Scarify the lawn by raking across harshly to remove any dead bits that have formed a mat of dry grass.

Spike the lawn with a garden fork to a depth of 20cm. Apply an organic fertiliser high in nitrogen (8:1:5 or 5:1:5).

Do this in the rain or after watering the lawn. Apply a top dressing layer of a 1cm to 3cm, available from your nursery.

Spread it evenly across the lawn using the back of the rake. Water it in.

It will look a mess after you have done this but shortly new growth will appear.

And soon the “green carpet” after being newly kempt and settled will enhance the environment surrounding it.

• In the Garden is written by feature writer, garden enthusiast and former teacher Julia Smith, who has returned home to live in Chintsa East. The column looks to inform both novice and accomplished gardeners on how to make the most of their green patches.