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The complete CRN edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com

DESIGN ELEMENTS

with landscape designer Louise McDaid
Are you looking for something different for your garden,

You’ve been looking through garden design books, or books about famous gardens from other places and just can’t seem to find something that’s a bit different but is doable in your own garden.

Some of the English, Italian or American gardens are on too much of a grand scale for you to get any real idea of how to incorporate it into your own garden.

So why not start you’re your own theme for the first of 5 weeks of ideas.

Unusual Themes_conifers pt1
We start the series with a look at conifer gardens in part one.
Louise says

"Conifers can be a bit divisive amongst gardeners – many love them for their particular shapes and variety, but a lot of gardeners loathe them and just cant’ get that picture of a 70’s style garden out of their mind, a time when the yellow leafed ones were popular like the Swanes Golden Cypress (cupressus sempervirens). "

There are so many that you’re sure to find something that suits your garden, even if you might not want a whole area turned over to conifers. While they look great planted in groupings, you can use them effectively amongst shrub borders, as screening or as features.
Let’s find out what this is all about.

Conifers need not be dull and boring if you look for something a bit different to add to your own garden.

A patch of lawn surrounded by a flower border with a tree in the middle: Does this sound like your garden?

If so, jazz it up with some unusual garden ideas and there’ll be more keeping over the next four weeks.
some of the conifer varieties mentioned are

Blue Arrow

C. sempervirens 'Glauca'

Juniperus scopulorum ‘Blue Arrow’.

Cupressus sempervirens 'Glauca’

Japanese black pine (pinus thunbergii)

If you like the idea of conifers, but aren’t sure how it would work in your garden, choose one of the ones Louise mentioned either from this week or next week’s episode, and it it’s not available, don’t give up, either order it online, or from a mail order catalogue or from your garden centre.