A woodland garden needn’t be on a grand scale. It may be no more than an extension to a perimeter planting of quick-growing trees and shrubs designed to screen the garden and offer protection from strong, cold blasts. Add to your tree-planting list a selection of interesting deciduous and evergreen species with colored bark (birch), shaped foliage (maple), (lowers (hawthorn), or fruit (crab apple). Under the tree canopy, it will be possible to grow shade-loving plants such as camellias and azaleas. The rampant, climbing, highly fragrant wild woodbine, otherwise known as honeysuckle, is another woodlander.
Low-growing plants for the woodland floor include a range of early spring bulbs. There are English bluebells, wood anemones, and winter aconites, all of which love a shaded, weed-free floor littered with a mulch of leaf mold. A small area of woodland can be made to seem larger by meandering the path through the planting and doubling back to give the impression of a walk through a larger area. In the early years, it will be necessary to deal with weeds by mulching, chemicals, or hand weeding. Eventually, as the canopy of leaves shuts out light, the ground will become weed free. Laying a deep mulch of bark or wood chippings will help beat the weeds and provide a forest-like feel. Small trees will become established and grow more quickly than expensive, large trees. As the trees grow, trim off the lower branches for better access.
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Planning a woodland garden
Plant climbers to scramble through the canopy. Honeysuckle, climbing roses, and clematis should all succeed in these conditions.
Plant spring bulbs that will die down before the soil becomes dry in summer.
Avoid fast-growing conifers such as the Leyland cypress.
Use vermin guards for a few years to stop local small mammals eating your young trees.
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