Experts predict that we will be using our gardens more in 2021 than we ever have before. Due to the pandemic, many people are now discovering the comfort that comes from gardening and adding green to their lives. From sustainable and wildlife-friendly gardens to outdoor living spaces, regardless of their size, here are the main gardening and garden design trends to look for this year.
Wildlife-friendly gardens
Nowadays, creating wildlife-friendly spaces is a key aspect to consider during the designing process, regardless of the size and location of the garden you are designing. Re-using elements in the garden and the types of materials and plants we choose are becoming vital considerations.
Jane Brockbank, MSGD of Jane Brockbank Gardens, believes that people are more interested in making gardens wildlife-friendly because of the “awareness of the climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity has grown enormously (…) we are all taking our gardens far more seriously regarding the important part they can play.”
Image credit: Pexels
Build your own food garden
According to a recent Garden Media Trend report, 67% of surveyed adults are “growing or plan to grow” edibles into 2021. The pandemic has clearly changed our priorities - as people are now looking forward to spending time outdoors, growing plants from seed have taken an upsurge last year and are set to continue into this year.
You do not need raised beds in a dedicated vegetable garden to grow food at home; you can make use of a small space by growing food in containers or vertically. Get more ideas for growing your edible garden.
Image credit: Markus Spiske, via Unsplash
Gardening Sustainably
Besides the focus on wildlife-friendly gardens, gardening sustainably continues to gain traction. People are now more and more interested in the concept of using gardening practices and designing outdoor spaces that cause no harm to the earth, while actually attempting to enhance it.
Some of the sustainable gardening practices include water conservation (idea: design a rain garden and/or collect and use rainwater), making your own compost, using organic methods (idea: use safe ways to deal with pests and fertilizer) and planting trees, as these give off oxygen and provide food and shelter for wildlife.
Image credit: Markus Spiske, via Unsplash
Outdoor living spaces
Patios, gardens and backyards have, during last year, dutifully served as office spaces, happy hour haunts, gyms, and refuges to enjoy nature. The popularity of outdoor living spaces will continue to grow in 2021.
The great thing about outdoor living spaces is that it's a place of relaxation that puts you in arm's reach of nature: shrubs, trees, scented flowers, and more.
Image credit: Mandy Buckland
Balcony gardening and small gardens
Many of us may not have a large outside or garden area, but 2021 will see families make the most of what they do have - regardless of size. With more city-dwellers looking for smart ways to embrace nature, balcony gardening is set to be on the rise this year. If you are looking to spend more time outside, but have a small outdoor space, here is how you can maximize your small garden.
Image credit: iStock
Curvilinear forms
After many years of symmetrically ordered urban gardens, garden designer Mark Laurence, MSGD whose consultancy creates an adaptive landscape for a changing world, believes that we will see a turning away from the linear and contemporary town garden to something wilder and more curvilinear. Mark says: "Curvilinear forms appear more natural in a garden environment and they connect us back to the flow of natural forms in the landscape."
Image credit: Mark Laurence
What other gardening or garden design trends are you looking forward to in 2021? Tell us in the comments!
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