{"id":42705,"date":"2024-12-10T10:26:20","date_gmt":"2024-12-10T09:26:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/700b3f24-162b-4c16-9728-3469284b9f30"},"modified":"2024-12-10T12:32:45","modified_gmt":"2024-12-10T11:32:45","slug":"this-garden-may-look-messy-to-some-but-its-low-maintenance-keeps-wildlife-very-happy-and-looks-stunning-in-autumn","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/rss_feed\/this-garden-may-look-messy-to-some-but-its-low-maintenance-keeps-wildlife-very-happy-and-looks-stunning-in-autumn\/","title":{"rendered":"This garden may look \u2018messy\u2019 to some, but it’s low maintenance, keeps wildlife very happy and looks stunning in autumn"},"content":{"rendered":"

With no horticultural training, art teacher Karin Winkler relies on intuition to create her naturalistic garden, which comes into its own each autumn. Words: Claire Masset, Photographs: Robert Mabic <\/p>

By Claire Masset\n <\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 10 December 2024 at 09:26 AM<\/p>

\n\n

If the grasses <\/a>and perennials<\/a> pioneer Karl Foerster could see Karin Winkler\u2019s garden, he would be proud of his legacy. Set among rolling pasture, hills and forests, Karin\u2019s 10,000 square metre plot in the eastern tip of Bavaria is the embodiment of Karl\u2019s low-maintenance<\/a>, nature-inspired gardening ideals. Laid-back plantings are cut through by lawn paths that invite discovery and multiple vistas.<\/p>

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The show starts early with carpets of hellebores, primroses and narcissi, and culminates in an Indian summer spectacle of silhouetted seedheads<\/a>, flaming foliage and silvery grasses. \u201cThe winter is long and cold here,\u201d says Karin. \u201cAnd the garden only starts to look summery in August<\/a>. Often the best time for sun and dry weather is autumn.\u201d<\/p>

Winter is long and cold here, and the garden only starts to look summery in August. Often the best time for sun and dry weather is autumn.<\/p> <\/blockquote>
Karin\u2019s creation, in contrast to many naturalistic gardens, is unrestrained by design or planting dogmas. When she started gardening the plot in her early twenties, she had no grand plan. Now in her fifties, she still doesn\u2019t. She just loves plants, especially perennials. Her favourites are phloxes, brightening the summer and early autumn garden in shades of pink, purple and white. Quoting Karl Foerster, she says: \u201cA garden without phlox<\/a> is not only a mistake but a sin against summer.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>

Feathery, transparent screens of Calamagrostis x acutiflora \u2018Karl Foerster\u2019 stand tall among the borders\u2019 turning leaves and crystallising seedheads, while Eupatorium cannabinum and Sanguisorba canadensis add further height. \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
The garden consists of variously sized island beds \u2013 some long and thin, others more rounded, but all substantial and organically shaped. Each year she adds a new border.<\/p>
One of her latest was more than 120 square metres. The extra work is no deterrent, and she relishes her annual trip to Christian Kress\u2019s nursery, Sarastro, just over the border in Austria. \u201cI take a wallet full of cash and fill my car up,\u201d she says.<\/p>

When she started gardening Karin had no grand plan. She still doesn\u2019t. She just loves plants.<\/p> <\/blockquote>
Karin favours taller perennials, such as eupatoriums<\/em>, white willowherb, Silphium<\/em>, Cephalaria gigantea<\/em>, Cicerbita plumieri<\/em> and Althaea cannabina<\/em>, and combines them with stately grasses, including molinias, miscanthus and Stipa gigantea<\/a><\/em>. \u201cI want to hide in my garden; that\u2019s why I like tall plants.\u201d This need for privacy may stem from her neighbours\u2019 disapproval.<\/p>
\u201cPeople around here don\u2019t like my garden. They think it\u2019s untidy<\/a>. They like things to be neat and just so.\u201d Although Karin might choose to hide from reproving glances, she can also take advantage of the wide borrowed views whenever she likes, as there is no barrier between her plot and the surrounding countryside \u2013 a boon too for the local deer and rabbits, which can be a challenge, though Karin is forgiving of their nibbling, and plants accordingly.<\/p>

Karin\u2019s joyful approach is refreshing \u2013 a reminder that gardening can, and should, be what you want it to be.<\/p> <\/blockquote>
Unlike many gardeners, Karin never worries about her garden, feels guilt about its maintenance, or suffers from gardener\u2019s block. With no horticultural training<\/a>, she relies on her artistic bent \u2013 she teaches art for a living \u2013 and the countryside for inspiration. Ideas come to her easily and she enjoys an enviable laissez-faire approach to design, simply choosing plants that are compatible with the soil and weather.<\/p>
$\"Karin$
Growing around a 150-year-old lime tree, tufts of Luzula nivea are interrupted by the plum tones of Berberis thunbergii. Close the house, the rose Rosa Schneekoppe (= \u2018Snow Pavement\u2019) flaunts itsbutter-yellow leaves. \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
\u201cThe ground in the garden is rather wet, so I always plant perennials that thrive in this environment.\u201d Stones too can be an issue. \u201cThe stones just seem to grow here,\u201d she says, with a smile. To deal with this, Karin uses the excavated pebbles to create little mounds within and on the edges of her borders \u2013 solid counterpoints to the loose planting.<\/p>
Other than a low wall, which she also built using surplus stones, there are no other structural features and no seating. Karin never feels the need to sit and contemplate, enjoying instead the close, more active connection with plants that gardening brings.<\/p>
$\"Karin$
A young, fiery Amelanchier x lamarckii rises from a sea of grasses, including silvery sprays of Deschampsia cespitosa and elegant bottle brushes of Calamagrostis brachytricha. In the right corner and in the distance are glimpses of Karin\u2019s many stone mounds. \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Aside from an ever-growing collection of ornamental<\/a> beds, the garden encompasses an old orchard with pear, apple, plum, cherry, quince and medlar trees and a vegetable garden. Karin grows lots of blueberries too, which she appreciates as much for the fruits\u2019 rich blues against the vibrant red autumn foliage as for their taste. A few ancient trees \u2013 including a huge larch and a giant pear \u2013 stand sentinel over the plot, to which she has added fruit trees, tulip trees, lindens and more.<\/p>
Amazingly for such a vast plot, Karin does all the gardening herself, relying on occasional assistance from a gardener. In the first two years of a new border, she weeds assiduously, but after that she lets it do its own thing. She never divides plants or cuts back stems at the end of the season. Once winter is over, she simply pulls all the dead stems away, and the show starts again.<\/p>
Karin\u2019s joyful approach is refreshing \u2013 a reminder that gardening can, and should, be what you want it to be. \u201cIn my garden I can be completely myself,\u201d she says. When every year brings extra plant beauty, she may well turn her mind back to Karl Foerster, who wrote: \u2018In my next life, I\u2019d like to be a gardener once again. The job is too big for just one lifetime.’<\/p>
In brief:<\/h3>
What<\/strong> Relaxed naturalistic garden.<\/p>
Where<\/strong> Bavaria, Germany. Size Over 10,000 square metres.<\/p>
Soil<\/strong> Stony, moist and well drained.<\/p>
Climate<\/strong> Harsh, snowy winters; autumn is often the sunniest season.<\/p>
Hardiness zone<\/strong> USDA 7a.<\/p>
8 of the best plants for autumn colour<\/h2> 1. Eutrochium maculatum<\/em> \u2018Riesenschirm\u2019<\/h3> $\"Eutrochium$
Eutrochium maculatum \u2018Riesenschirm\u2019 \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Thriving in full sun and damp soil, this is a hardy giant that remains upright throughout the winter. Height and spread: 2.5m x 90cm. AGM*. RHS H7, USDA 4a-8b\u2020.<\/p>
2. Anaphalis margaritacea <\/em><\/h3> $\"Anaphalis$
Anaphalis margaritacea \u00a9\u00a0Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Clusters of white flowers in late summer last through autumn. Likes full sun and moist, well-drained soil. 1m x 1m. RHS H7, USDA 3a-8b.<\/p>
3. Symphyotrichum<\/em> \u2018Ochtendgloren\u2019<\/h3>
$\"symphyotrichum$
smphyotrichum \u2018Ochtendgloren\u2019 \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Produces generous sprays of small pink flowers throughout the autumn among mildew-resistant, dark-green foliage. Likes well-drained soil. 1.4m x 60cm. AGM. RHS H4, USDA 3a-8b.<\/p>
Read our grow guide to Symphyotrichum<\/a><\/p>
4. Rhus typhina <\/em>\u2018Dissecta\u2019<\/h3> $\"Rhus$
Rhus typhina \u2018Dissecta\u2019 \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Turns spectacular shades of yellow, orange and red in autumn. Full sun and moist soil. 2.5m x 2.5m. AGM. RHS H6, USDA 3a-8b.<\/p>
5. Aconitum carmichaelii<\/em> \u2018Arendsii\u2019<\/h3> $\"Aconitum$
Aconitum carmichaelii \u2018Arendsii\u2019 \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
With branched panicles of blue flowers, this is a striking addition to the autumn garden. Beware: all parts of the plant are toxic. Up to 1.5m x 60cm. AGM. RHS H7, USDA 3a-7b.<\/p>
Discover how to grow aconitum<\/a><\/p>
6. Sanguisorba<\/em> \u2018Blackthorn\u2019<\/h3> $\"Sanguisorba$
Sanguisorba \u2018Blackthorn\u2019 \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Produces soft-pink bottlebrush flowers on upright stems from late summer into October. Enjoys moist soil and sun or light shade. 1.5m x 45cm. RHS H7, USDA 4a-8b.<\/p>
Here’s how to grow sanguisorba<\/a><\/p>
7. Sanguisorba<\/em> \u2018Scapino\u2019<\/h3>
$\"Sanguisorba$
Sanguisorba \u2018Scapino\u2019 \u00a9\u00a0Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Bears a profusion of dark-purple flowers that are held on wiry, upright stems. Prefers a position in full sun but will tolerate drought. 1.5m x 50cm. RHS H7, USDA 4a-8b.<\/p>
8. Euphorbia palustris <\/em><\/h3>
$\"Euphorbia$
Euphorbia palustris \u00a9 Robert Mabic <\/figcaption> <\/figure>
Starts off the season with fresh-green leaves, which turn a rich orange-red in autumn. Prefers full sun and some drainage. 1m x 2m. AGM. RHS H7, USDA 5a-10b.<\/p>
*Holds an Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society. \u2020Hardiness ratings given where available.<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n
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