Connecticut Horticultural Society, 2015
Garden Design and Plant Selection by Habitat
Robert Herman
Slide List
Garden combination quote
Formal Hedges
Formal garden with annuals
English border painting
English border photo
Contemporary Continental garden with grasses, Salvia and Rudbeckia
Garden with Aster oblongifolius ‘October Glory’, Solidago ‘Fireworks’, Agastache foeniculum
and ornamental grasses
Photo of Karl Foerster
Karl Foerster sunken garden at his home
Rudbeckia fulg. var. sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’/ Sedum ‘Herbstfreude’ (Autumn Joy)
PPA German plants of the year
Piet Oudolf home with Astrantia, Thalictrum, Actea & Hosta and Perennials and Their Garden
Habitats by Richard Hansen
Weihenstephan trial gardens
Swiss trial garden with Silver Summer plant mix
Open, sunny site, Killesberg Park, Stuttgart
Lavender & Allium planting with Pyrus salicifolius in Volkspark Bornstedter Feld, Berlin
Perennial plant habitat sign in German
Woodland Habitat: Tiarella cordifolia/Dicentra canadensis in CT woods
Erythronium groundcover in Aspen woods
Asarum canadensis & Parthenocissus quinquefolia in the wild
Woodland edge example with Astilbe & Phlox
Woodland edge example under arbor with Aquilegia and Hosta
Woodland edge example with Actea & Aruncus
Open, sunny area with Stachys byzantina, Salvia cv. And Lavandula cv.
Pelz garden with Echinops sphaerocephalus ‘Arctic Glow’, Euphorbia palustris, Persicaria
polymorpha and Calamagrostis x acutiflora
Planting with Achillea, Salvia,Allium and Dictamnus
Open, sunny site plant combination: Panicum virgatum, Agastache ‘Blue Fortune’, Helenium
‘Rubinzerg’ (Ruby Dwarf)
German university parking lot planting with Calamagrostis, Achillea and Gypsophila
Small alpine garden with Aster alpinus
Large alpine garden with Pulsatilla, Acantholimon and Dianthus
Bed/Border planting with Bergenia cv., Salvia cv., Geranium cv, and Eupatoruim rugosum
‘Chocolate’
Bed/border planting with Paonia cultivars, Salvia ‘Blauhuegel’ and Stachys macrantha ‘Superba’
Pelz garden with Persicaria polymorpha, Eremurus ‘Shelford Pink’, Knautia macedonica,
Anthemis tinctoria
Partly shaded border with Brunnera macrophylla ‘Langtrees’’/Dicentra spectabilis ‘Goldheart’
Hosta ‘Krossa Regal’ with Astilbe ‘Visions’
Water’s edge planting with Eriophorum angustifolium
Waterside planting with Juncus effusus and Primula florindae
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Caltha palustris at water’s edge
Nymphaea cv. in pond
Noel Kingsbury quote
Cassian Schmidt of Hermanshof in Weinheim, Germany studying plant communities
Natural meadow
Cape Cod landscape
Hermanshof, Weinheim, Germany - Dry prairie planting with Stipa (Nasella) tenuissima,
Echinacea paradoxa and Asclepias tuberosa
Dry prairie planting in fall, with Stipa (Nasella) tenuissima, Amorpha canescens and Echinacea
simulata
Open, sunny parking area at German university – bring the natural world into an urban or
suburban environment
U.S. Parking lot with Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ and Rudbeckia ‘Goldsturm’
Alchemilla mollis/ Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae/ Epimedium – low maintenance
Zurich Botanical Garden – work with what you’ve got
Panicum virgatum, Agastache foeniculum, Helenium ‘Ruby Dwarf’ – robust, pest-resistant plants
Molinia caerulea ‘Variegata’/Persicaria amplexicaule/Rudbeckia fulgida/Eupatorium purpureum
in moist, sunny ‘area at Beth Chatto’s Garden – tolerant, adaptable, disease-resistant plants
Sedum ‘Matrona and Eryngium planum cv.- compact plants
Helenium ‘Kupferzwerg’ (Copper Dwarf), Aster amellus – compact plants
Salvia nemorosa ‘Blauhügel’/ Achnatherum calamagrostis/ Achillea ‘Schwellenburg’ – compact
plants
North American plant community – Tiarella, Camassia and woody plants coexist harmoniously,
create a “natural“ ecosystem
North American plant community combinations – Monarda bradburniana and Heliopsis
helianthoides (‘Prairie Sunset’-like)
German-style ecological planting design
Hermanshof: Overview of gardens in spring
Overview of gardens in early summer
Section of gardens in mid-summer
Section of gardens in fall
Overview of gardens in late fall
Piet Oudolf garden in fall
R. Herman
www.plantsman.us
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Richard Hansen Concept - Garden Design by Habitat
A German ecological approach to combining perennials based on universal plant habitats.
Plants from all over the world are classified according to their ideal growing situation. The major
categories are:
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Woodland - partially shaded, soil high in humus
Woodland Edge - south side sunny and warm; north side shady and cool
Open, Sunny Area
Alpine or Rock Garden
Bed or Border, sunny or partly shaded (primarily large, decorative plants)
Water’s Edge and Marsh
Water (able to grow in water)
Why consider planting a perennial garden that is based on habitat?
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To maintain the natural environment
To bring the feeling of a natural world to an urban or suburban environment
To create a family garden – an outdoor classroom
To reduce maintenance
To minimize use of chemicals
To have a successful garden
Guidelines Based on Plant Communities and Proper Habitats
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Work with what you’ve got
Choose plants that thrive in the given conditions
Select plants that are:
1. tolerant and adaptable
2. disease-resistant
3. compact or strong-stemmed
4. similar in rate of growth or competitiveness
Strive for a natural design style – observe and imitate nature
Use plants that co-exist harmoniously together, creating your own version of a natural
ecosystem
Some additional design points I did not cover in this lecture
Forget the English "class picture" effect - allow for a natural variation in heights
Plant in large numbers or swaths
Let groups "flow" into and around one another
Let plants self-sow and weed selectively
Plan for year-round interest
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Resources for Habitat Garden Planning:
Perennials and Their Garden Habitats by Hansen/Stahl
Timber Press, 1993 – out of print
The New Perennial Garden by Noël Kingsbury
Frances Lincoln Limited, 1996 (hard and soft cover editions)
Hansen Design Premises:
ONE:
The "leading”, or “dominant," plants provide the starting point for the planting. They maintain a
sense of order; without them, a bed or border design cannot be successful. They are organized
in a rhythmical succession to maintain cohesiveness in the design.
TWO:
In order for a garden's conception to come alive and create interest, the varying plant heights
should establish different levels, changing and providing a kind of “give and take” between each
group. For example, lower perennials are planted in groups that start at the front of the garden
and "flow" to the back, surrounding the middle-sized and tall plants so that they seem to step
forward or retreat. This creates stimulating optical “crossroads”, or meeting points, and, at the
same time, surprises one with details that become apparent as the viewpoint changes.
THREE:
Another method to establish a similar result is to place taller plants, singly or in small groups,
within a planting of low, ground-covering perennials. The goal is to create a contrast between
tall and low plants which can be further enhanced by changes in flower colors and blooming
periods.
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