Photography by Christine Chang Hanway for Gardenista.
A visit to textile designer Neisha Crosland’s London garden is always an opportunity for sleuthing eyes to uncover what may have inspired her latest designs; and after an extended winter, we were delighted when she contacted us to say that her black tulips were ready for viewing.
Gardenista: What can you tell us about the purple color scheme in Neisha Crosland’s spring garden? To extend the interest in this very focal area, tulips were used to give the first bit of color, followed by the allium as a second color.
Gardenista: The names of these two flowers? ‘Black Parrot’ Tulips are $11.95 for 10 bulbs and ‘Purple Sensation’ Allium bulbs are $14.95 for 10; both available from Eden Brothers.
Gardenista: As we look across, please tell us about how this garden is zoned.
Gardenista: Everyone wants to know more about these trees. Sean Walter: They are Quercus ilex (Holm Oak), designed primarily to give a large evergreen presence and structure to the lawn area as well as providing some evergreen screening to the master bedroom.
Gardenista: When do you use box hedging?
Gardenista: The planting scheme in the well in the boxed hedge provides a focal point in the garden. The cercis is underplanted with purple iris, which gives spring interest and color while the sword foliage is still interesting for the rest of the season.
Gardenista: We’d love to know more about your planting strategy at the border of the stepped lawn. The buxus balls provide a structural rhythm to the plantings and are complemented by grasses in the summer.
Gardenista: What do you have growing on the boundary walls?
Gardenista: What grows in the containers during the summer?
Gardenista: How did this loquat tree survive this winter?
Did you miss the post on Crosland’s winter garden?