Imperfect gardening is a growing trend for 2018, so for those of you that struggle to keep your garden looking perfect all year round, now is the time to show it off.

You may start hearing the term ‘wabi-sabi’ a lot more in the gardening world, it’s a Japanese philosophy focused on accepting the imperfect nature of life. In the outside world it refers to letting your plants and flowers grow naturally without too much maintenance and being able to enjoy the natural and untidy look. It will also leave you with time to do other things in the garden, such as create an area to dine al fresco.

Here are some tips for achieving your imperfect garden:

• Plant natives and allow them to self-seed and grow naturally as opposed to being controlled.
• Leave seed pods through winter for wildlife to feed on and enjoy.
• Don’t view insects, disease or death of a plant as failure but instead as a part of the natural life cycle.
• Enjoy the weeds. Dandelion and clover are both tremendous food sources for bees.

Imperfect gardening doesn’t mean giving up on your garden completely, it simply means to enjoy the natural plant cycle and to not be ashamed if your garden doesn’t look like one from a magazine.

Head over to The Barn and browse our range of plants, flower baskets and bulbs.