How to keep borders interesting all year round

Borders with all year round interest look great and sustain a healthy environment.

By selecting the right plants and planting to a well thought out plan, it is possible to have spectacular and interesting borders almost all year round and at the same time provide a protective habitat for beneficial insects to overwinter.

As the colourful flowers of perennials start to fade into the embers of autumn there is no need to rush to cut them down and put the garden to bed as traditional advice would have you believe. The structural stems and interesting seedheads of plants such as Eryngium, Veronicastrum, Inula and Thalictrum extend a borders season of interest through the autumn and into winter. If great garden designers like Piet Oudolf champion this style of four season gardening we can't go wrong by trying it too.

As well as giving us a longer season to enjoy the garden it also provides the perfect natural habitats for beneficial insects to overwinter. By leaving the hollow stems of plants standing and the leafy organic matter blanketing the surface of the soil we can encourage an abundance of beneficial insects such as ladybirds, Violet Ground Beetles and Marmalade Hoverflies to thrive and keep a healthy balance in the garden.

So, rather than putting the garden to bed for winter let's enjoy a fourth season of interest, appreciating the autumn palette of ambers, browns and yellows, and let the garden become a comfortable bed for all those beneficial insects!