Top garden designer and broadcaster Michael McCoy tells us the key tips on naturalistic planting. It’s super low maintenance and looks good for months at a time, including in winter, so find out how to adapt this trend for your own garden. Plus how to use ornamental grasses in your border.
00:00 Welcome
00:07 What is naturalistic planting design
00:19 Garden designer Michael McCoy https://thegardenist.com.au/
00:57 Subscribe to the Middlesized Garden: https://www.youtube.com/c/ThemiddlesizedgardenCoUk
01:09 The naturalistic garden context and overview
01:57 How to achieve naturalistic garden planting in your own garden
02:08 Think about contrasting three fundamental plant shapes
03:09 You only need three types of plant in flower at any one time
03:31 How naturalistic planting is different from a herbaceous border
04:04 Colchicums in bloom in Michael’s own garden
04:10 How densely to plant in naturalistic planting
04:45 Why deciduous grasses work better than evergreen ones
07:25 How to place ornamental grasses with other plants in a border
09:34 What percentage of a naturalistic border should be planted with grasses?
10.30 Tips on doing naturalistic planting in smaller spaces
12:19 Only use plants that look good before flowering, during flowering and afterwards!
13:33 Naturalistic planting design is very low maintenance
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43 Comments
Must say that I truly loved this video. What a wealth of knowledge!
Thank you! Such a good topic. 😁
This was brilliant and just what I needed as I’m going to be removing 6,000sf of lawn and doing gravel (lots of deer in headlights stares when I tell people this). My goal is to build something over time comparable to this, where the plants create interest and make natural borders. I love the grasses! I’m also going to try doing a moss garden in an existing front bed, where I have 2,000sf of lawn. I’m Zone 9a, South Texas. Thanks so much!
Wow what a talker Michael is, you can tell he's got that broadcaster flow to the way he gives information. Very easy to watch and listen to.
Great video best garden content
I like the rhythm of this type of garden and have always enjoyed seeing it also on a smaller scale in wide border designs.
excellent session. Clear advice tempered by place and climate. McCoy's comments well illustrated by the video. Thank you!
Wonderful interview! The borders are just my taste. I aim for something similar with a bit more cottage flowers in my own garden. There were so many useful pointers. Thank you for the video! I’ll be rewatching this one again and again.
Gorgeous gardens and excellent design advice. One of the best garden design interviews I have seen on Youtube! I love this garden style and appreciate the opportunity to learn more.
So helpful!
💚💚💚
SIMPLY EXCELLENT!!! The absolutely best video on design that think can apply to any garden styles. I will definitely save and share this video.
What a great Video, really enjoyed it. I've used "the new perennial" style in my new garden, just waiting for the first year to see if I've got it right.
The guest has a unique way of describing gardening that is fun. "FLORAL GLAMOUR" Lots of good information.
ThIs is pure gold! Precisely what I wish to do in a garden I’ll soon have on the Mediterranean. I will watch it over and over and take detailed notes. Can’t thank you enough. 🙏🏻
Thank you👌👌
Good👍👍
I always love her videos, very informative… your hair is beautiful as well, some dark streaks thru it would really make the white silver pop.
This is an EXCELLENT Q&A. Thank you Alexandra
Outstanding in every respect. Will stand watching again and again. Thanks for asking all the right questions!
A patch of green in the dry countryside is a magnet for hungry critters. Sure, some critters are welcome. Others aren't. Yum yum yum, chomp chomp chomp. How do they deal with that? I don't see any fencing.
I had to pause video every 10 second due to the overload of useful information and the beauty of the garden
Wonderful video. Very enjoyable and full of wisdom. Thanks so much!
A resilient flowering plant? Just TRY to kill a yucca plant. I've succeeded but it was quite a competition for quite a long time.
What a great episode Alexandra, thanks! I really enjoyed it.
Wow! What a wealth of information!
Brilliant video, thank you Alexandra. Your questions are so helpful!
Wonderful information and production. Well done.
Seems derivative of Piet Ouldorf. And those red spikey plants are almost dystopian in their cumulative effect.
Thank you – very interesting. I would add – especially for beginners is to choose what grows well in gardens in their neighbourhood.
Very articulate and clear explanations. Great questions, I learned a lot! I also have an arid climate and want to naturalize, and use more decorative grasses. This was extremely helpful!
These Australian garden interviews are great, especially for gardeners who live in drought prone areas like California. Your questions are excellent, Alexandra, and unlike many people we see on TV, you let your guests complete their thoughts without interjecting. I love your quality content. I have a 16ft tall Mexican Fence Post Cactus, young Palo Verde Trees, and epazote herb growing in my rose garden, which is in shade in the late afternoon. The roses are in large resin planters, with white alyssum shading the roots. We do what we must! 🙂
What a gorgeous garden, many thanks for the video- greetings from Portugal!
I am glad that I have found your channel. Very informative
??? Get the colors right? I say it once again nature can't get colors wrong. All colors of nature go together.
I learn so much from your videos and guest speakers, thank you so much!
Oh, this is brilliant! You present the strongest garden programmes, Alexandra. 💖💕 And I found this particular one by talking to a friend as we weeded the church garden. We were talking about garden design, R. mentioned the term "engulfed by plants" and a few emails later, here I am watching. Very inspiring, so thank you.
Wonderful, Alexandra! Thank you again.
the beauty lies less in each individual plant but more in the walls and seas of plants when grouped and growing together! amazing.
Cor Blimey, the royal McCoy. Bloody good moit. Gotta look the shoips.
You simply have the best posts ! Your topics and your guests are always phenomenal !! Thank you !!🥰
astonighingly informative and inspiring!
I just wanted to say thank you for this brilliant interview. I've been planning a border in this sort of style and have watched this video several times now – the advice is just so thoughtfully concise and useful.