Photographs by Jonathan Gooch for Gardenista.
For British garden writer and urban garden expert Isabelle Palmer, gardening is associated with happy childhood memories.
Now the author of two books, The Balcony Gardener and the recently published The House Gardener, Isabelle Palmer has become the go-to expert on transforming small garden spaces on this side of the Atlantic.
Palmer’s flat is on the top two floors of a converted Congregational Church with a balcony on each floor. A balcony has the greatest impact as an extension of indoor space, and it’s important to ask yourself how you will want to use your balcony in relation to your indoor space.
For small balconies, the goal is to bring the outdoors in.
The perception of greenery beyond any room makes an impactful connection with the outoors and will make your indoor space seem larger. Even if you only have a tiny balcony, it is worth the effort to put something green out there as it provides a focal point beyond the boundaries of your walls.
Evergreens including boxwood, eucalyptus, thyme, and a bay tree hold down the fort for this season’s additions, hydrangeas, pansies, violas, and a sprinkling of oxalis.
She likes to formulate her palette by either using different tones or shades of one color or using complementary and contrasting colors.
Differing tones of pinks and purples from hydrangeas and oxalis create this season’s color palette.
A tall bamboo screens the neighboring roof. White ranunculus plants have been placed at the far end of the balcony to draw the eye to the farthest point as a way to increase the sense of depth and make the balcony seem bigger.
Palmer uses white pebbles as a top dressing while the green plants in the background take visual precedence over her gray-toned containers.
With her training in art school, Palmer applies a painterly approach to mixing colors in her window boxes. Bigger containers hold more soil, which means there is less stress on the plant, giving it an optimal chance for healthy growth.
On her lower small triangular-shaped balcony, Palmer squeezes in a small foldable Fermob Bistro Table and Fermob Bistro Chair for her morning coffee. After you’ve installed and planted your balcony garden, any time you can save on maintenance means more time to sit back, relax, and enjoy it.
Hellebores and pansies planted in galvanized zinc window boxes sit on a narrow stone ledge.
Palmer’s kitchen herb garden includes mint, chives, rosemary, beetroot, oregano, and parsley.
A pot of barely discernible sweet peas sits on top of artificial grass that Palmer laid on her small balcony for added color.
Palmer grows an olive tree and strawberries in a window box.
Isabelle Palmer enjoys some time tending plants on her balcony.