How to create a garden full of surprises

If you’re fed up with rectangular lawns, straight flower borders and predictable planting, maybe it’s time to add an element of surprise to your garden.

Daniel March, designer of A Garden Of Two Tales within the new Gardens Of Curiosity category at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival, is aiming to give visitors some inspiration about discovering something new with his creation.

It takes you across a water feature into a secluded gathering area where you can reflect and enjoy the thought-provoking design of the ornamental installations.

But March says that you too can create an element of surprise in your own garden.

Create screening

“I have vertical structures which block part of the garden. I think this is quite key in lots of garden designs, creating separation and new, multiple rooms within one space,” he says.

You could do it by erecting vertical metal screening, or large feature shrubs such as the dogwoods Cornus kousa or Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’ which will give you vibrant-coloured winter stems.

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Alternatively, go for a hedge such as a taxus or euonymus to create a screen, or tall ornamental grasses such as deschampsia or Calamagrostis ‘Karl Foerster’(feather reed grass) or Stipa gigantea, which are lower in parts of the year but give you more of a journey in the summer as people walk through, he suggests.

Choose varying styles

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If you have segregated parts of the garden, you could create a surprise with different styles of planting in each section, he suggests.

“Have a different style of planting or an alternative plant to give you that surprise element. It might be aromatic and Mediterranean, for instance.”

Select a stand-out feature

“You could have a key plant, a piece of art, or wind chimes which can withstand the elements. It could be a statue or a silhouette, or maybe a wild animal sculpture in a shady woodland space.

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“Depending on the style you want, you could have a large abstract sculpture or if you prefer a more natural look you could get a wood carving that will weather over time,” he suggests.

Materials such as corten steel will give a more ageing, rusted feel, while composite materials could be incorporated if you want a more modern, sleek style, he adds.

Mirrors can also provide a surprise reflective element, hung on a patio wall where they will make the space feel bigger and can highlight a water feature or plants from a different angle.

Stand-alone small trees, such as Acer japonicum or a piece of topiary can also be eye-catching, he says.

Find a new seating spot

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A hidden bench, surrounded by fragrant planting, could add another element of surprise as people veer away from the patio further into the garden to experience a quieter ambience, he suggests.

“If you can interact multiple senses – the sound of trees around you, the smell of aromatic plants and maybe a water feature – those layers are key.”

The seating itself may be a surprise. It could just be a large rock or a stump which might have been in the space previously before the garden was designed, he adds.

Moving parts such as swinging seats or hammocks attached to mature trees can also bring an element of surprise.

Add patio surprises

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Wall art, decorative tiles and colourful patio rugs can all provide a wow factor. A self-contained water feature also adds a flow, a moving part to the space, while planting plants for pollinators in pots on the patio may create an environment for a surprise visit from pretty butterflies and bees.

Light up key features

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“When you are entertaining, use lighting which turns on automatically, but you can also use lighting around the garden to focus on key elements. If you could get lighting which accentuates, for instance, a fern structure, that is quite cool.

“Amelanchiers are quite popular at the moment as they are easy to grow and reliable. Uplighting can really elevate their frame. Multi-stemmed plants such as Acer japonica are also key for that.”

Create a kids’ discovery zone

“If you have space, create a woodland path through planting, leading to a space that they can make their own away from the adults, having a sort of den feel, a gathering space,” he suggests.

“You could add old stumps they can perch on and anything natural in the garden.”

Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival runs from July 1-6.