Ireland has lush gardens that cover acres with thousands of plants. We all cannot have such large gardens but you could create a “Touch of Irish” with a mini theme garden or a few additions to your backyard or garden areas.

photo credit: Ivan Walsh

Simple additions of statuary, seating benches and plants common to the Emerald Isle will create an Irish atmosphere.

Use these easy tips to bring an Irish touch to your garden.

Create a stone or gravel walkway around the garden. Some Irish gardens are planted as Gravel gardens are quite popular in Ireland and use shrubs and perennial flowers in the gravel beds. This would be an easy garden area to maintain and would do well in hard to grow area s or as a specialty garden or min garden tucked away in a corner.

Choose vivid green plants with bright flowers. They will show up against the neutral gravel background and add color that stands out in your yard.

Reading benches along walkways or in a nook will add a feel of invitation for reflection or enjoying a book in the garden areas.

And if you are looking for an atmosphere of frivolity, statuary like leprechauns or frog princes can be placed at focal points or just off the walkway on a gravel base.

photo credit: me and the sysop

Plant white clover or shamrock. Clover has a long-standing history in Ireland and has both a factual base and lore that has built up over the years.

Shamrocks have a bulb like seed and are perennials in many areas. They also make excellent houseplants but do need to die back each year and have a quiet spell. If you live in a warmer climate shamrocks look excellent in the outdoor garden areas.

Shamrocks grow year after year. (They may need overwintered indoors in cooler climates.) Clover likes well-drained, moist soil and full sun. It grows by sending out runners. The plants will go dormant in winter and re-emerge in spring. There are white clover and red clover varieties.

If you have room you can add Irish yew as an evergreen tree. Yew can also be grown as a hedge or shaped as topiary. The Irish yew will thrive in well-drained soil and is drought tolerant after it is established. It is suited to heavy pruning so can be shaped for a unique look in your garden.

Other plants suited for an Irish theme garden

1. Lacy ferns
2. Irish moss – excellent groundcover with tiny white flowers in bright green foliage.
3. Holly plants. Holly is considered invasive in some regions so check with your garden center for acceptable holly varieties for your growing area.

An Irish theme gardens will create and relaxing area in your garden and is an easy style of garden to care for. It will also make a great small space garden for a corner or along a wall area.

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Harry Potter books and movies have been a huge success around the world. And with the newest movie about to be released on July 17th, 2009, a Harry Potter theme garden might be a perfect addition to your garden. This could also encourage your children to take an interest in gardening.
photo credit: tinyfroglet

Creating a Harry Potter theme garden will depend on your growing climate, plants available and a little creativity on your part.

Hagrid, a popular character from the story, had a garden along with a charming cottage. The cottage would be somewhat difficult to copy but a fairie house would be a good replacement and fairie homes have that mystical feel to them.

Pumpkins also grew in Hagrid’s garden. In the current movie Hagrid grows huge orange pumpkins. Any pumpkin would fit in this theme garden including the miniature pumpkins, or the Lumina pumpkins (called ghost pumpkins by some), which are white on the outside and orange on the inside.

Hellebores, which grow in a multitude of colors varieties, grow well in many climates. They are mentioned many times in the Harry Potter series and are used for making potions. The Kingston cardinal is one example of a Hellebore.
photo credit: alice-palace

There are many magical plants mentioned in the Harry Potter movie but they are not real.

But with a little creativity you can substitute actual plants in your own Harry Potter theme garden creation.

For example,

• you could use  Balloon flowers or Chinese lanterns in place of puffapods.
• The money plant has a unique look and would fit into the garden well.
• Flowering cabbage or kale could be used to represent mandrakes.
• Bat plants, Venus flytrap and any evening flower such as a moonflower would add interest to the garden.
• And you will find many herbs would have a look that would fit into this them garden well. Ginger, sage, nettle and wormwood are a few examples.

You will learn more about all the magical plants in the world of Harry Potter by visiting  the plant section of the Harry Potter Lexicon website.

Night lights and garden art would add more interest too as would varying heights in the garden. And any garden seems to benefit from mini pond or rustic fountain.

This is a project your children may really enjoy and lead them to years of gardening. And any theme garden add fun to your garden and backyard

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Tea gardens add character, color and a plentiful supply of herbs for creating your own tea blends. I have also found tea gardens to be one of the easiest gardens to add your own flair or personality to.
photo credit: net_efekt

Another benefit of a tea garden is that it takes a very small amount of space. A 6-foot by 8-foot garden is actually quite big. If you have less space you can make it smaller. And if you only have indoor space available, a tea garden will adapt well to being indoors or on a balcony.

If you have more room you may want to set the tea garden up in a cottage garden tea garden design with a small fenced in area with a gate and trellis or arbor.

Many cottage herb garden designs plant honeysuckle, clematis, climbing rose bushes or wisteria on the trellis or arbor. It will not be long before these plants climb over the arbor and trellis and add astonishing color to you garden area.

Whatever size you select for an outdoor tea garden you will want to divide your entire garden down the middle by making a path. The path can be wide enough for a wheelbarrow or a slender path used for harvesting. Next create narrow paths within each planting bed on either side of the path.

Your goal is to make everything is within arm’s length for weeding and harvesting. This will keep you off the soil and allow more room for your herbs. I will often place a flat rock to stand on just off a path if I need to be able to reach into the garden bed further. This also adds a more natural look to the garden.

Choose herb plants that will thrive in your garden zone. A trip to you local nursery or garden center will help you with your plant selections. I also mix a few colorful fragrant flowers, fruits and vegetables in the herb garden just to add interest and color.

As with any garden, plant the garden based on what each plant needs for sunlight and spacing.

Herbs can be planted closer together than many plants and still thrive so fill the garden. If possible leave a very small section for a tiny bench or a very small table. This will give you a place to relax, enjoy the garden and have a cup of fresh tea.

I also try to add a rain barrel to my herb garden area so that water is easily within reach for watering the plants.
photo credit: chaz2b

And if your only available space is the patio or indoors, herbs grow very well in containers and hanging baskets. Just try to find a spot that get 6 to 8 hours of sunlight for the plants.

Herbs make wonderful container gardens because you have interesting color and texture in herbs and by selecting unique containers and planters you can create wonderful relaxing garden art that can be changed during the season and that also adds tea and seasonings to you home.

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