Uncommon Curb Appeal in East London, Courtesy of Resident Garden Designer Izi Glover
Photography by Jim Powell for Gardenista.
House facades that feature thriving plants have been clinically proven to regulate stress for residents as well as passersby.
Pinus mugo, Euphorbia characias subsp. wulfenii, Allium sphaerocephalon, Salvia greggii ‘Violin Music’, Salvia nemerosa ‘Caradonna’ and Erigeron karvinskianus keep company between a house forecourt and the sidewalk.
Miniature conifers provide a more interesting shape and texture than formal box balls or trained bay trees. A good front garden makes a neighborhood friendlier, not only to look at but because people suddenly find that they have common ground.
Tough perennials such as Cenolophium denudatum and Geranium ‘Ann Folkard’ are allies for any laissez-faire gardener.
Yellow and cream Sisyrinchium striatum with its iris-like leaves and daisy-like Erigeron karvinskianus thrive in poor soils and will happily inhabit cracks in paving if given the chance, lending a more casual air to formal hardscaping.
Erigeron and grasses around an understated bench, between Japanese quince (Chaenomeles x superba ‘Pink Lady’) and Verbascum ‘Copper Rose’.
Enhancing the pavement while obscuring the downstairs window, Trachelospermum jasminoides.
“I don’t do neat measures of hard landscaping, harsh outdoor lighting, monocultural planting—which unfortunately is what a lot of new garden owners desire.” This is the first thing to be clarified.
Accents of intense color come from Dianthus carthusianorum and, closer to the window, Persicaria amplexicaulis ‘Firetail’. Trees bring in birds and pollinators, and there is plenty of scope for multiple small trees for well-considered privacy without too much shade.
Between the vine-covered railings and the house, persicaria, cotinus and plumes of grasses.
The view from a kitchen sink in London Fields. It is worth remembering that a well-resolved front garden improves an indoor space, not only in looks but light.