In the world of horticulture a plug is a small container grown plant. They may well be distributed in trays and installing them is usually most effective done en mass.
This garden in Freshwater had been partially revamped earlier this year 
with an unusual decked seating area and board walk. The builders did a fine job creating such an intricate shape.
But to really make the area sing out the soft landscaping was undertaken by us, and whilst we were at it we installed some decking steps to lead the users on through and onto a lower level of garden.
The customers wanted to utilise the area with new grass and incorporate wild plants, and bulbs. So we set to planting over 300 plugs of native plants, from daisys and primroses for the lawn to foxgloves and sweet peas for the banks. The aim was not only to naturally contrast with the formality of the hard deck, but also to be naturally self sustaining. Each plant will attract a huge array of wildlife, once established, allowed to flower and seed or fruit. In time the area will literally buzz with life. And maintaining this area should be less labour intensive than a well manicured lawn, as it will be allowed to grow slightly longer, and will not need feeding, and be less thirsty.
Spring flowering bulbs such as Narcissus, Muscari, Frittilaria and Crocus will give the lawn and hedgerow a wonderful burst into life. The green specifications of this job include: untreated hard wood decking, local quarried gravel, local horse manure, local turf, English grown plants in a peat substitute, organically grown bulbs from Holland, and some of the green waste was recycled in the garden as a wood stack and to compost. We even found a use for the plastic plant trays.
The crowning glory to this area of the garden is a majestic Tillia tree. We know that the birds love to hop around the branches and so we tempted them down to eye level by installing a found bird feeder.
The view from the cottage windows really will be a picture!
