Bring your holiday home: Pops of bright colour and spiky succulents will keep summer alive

Whether you are off to a far-flung destination or staying at home this month, you can bring a holiday atmosphere to your garden with a few simple tricks. 

Adding bright colours, silver-leaved plants, succulents and a few pieces of well-chosen garden furniture can make you feel as though you are enjoying a relaxing break just by stepping outside your back door.  

The vivid tones of bougainvillea stand out in many overseas resorts. While this tropical climber can’t withstand frost and cannot be grown outside over winter in the UK, there are plenty of other bright colours we can use to create a similar effect, such as bold red geraniums and bright blue agapanthus in terracotta pots.

Oleanders will grow in a container on a sun-soaked patio but also need to be brought inside over winter. Or try planting a large mophead pink hydrangea such as H. ‘Preziosa’ in neutral-toacid soil. 

Another good choice would be the award-winning tea rose ‘Bengal Crimson’, which bears cherry red blooms from May until the first frosts, bringing dramatic colour to the garden. 

Scarlet Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ is an award-winning cultivar of the montbretia which can be planted in a border. 

GOING GREEK

Grey-leaved plants are often found in hotter climates because their silvery foliage reflects harsh sunlight and is more drought-tolerant. Grow these in a sunny spot at home to conjure up the impression of being on a Greek island. 

Lamb’s ear or Stachys byzantina is an evergreen perennial with soft, furry grey leaves and spires of purple flowers in early summer, found in the wilds of Turkey, Armenia and Iran. 

Rose campion or Lychnis coronaria combines vibrant hot pink flowers with silvery foliage. 

Centaurea cineraria, also known as dusty miller, is an evergreen perennial with feathery blue-green leaves and purple flowers in summer. 

Succulents are found from the Cornish coast to Mexican desert gardens. In most parts of the UK, they are best grown in pots so they can be brought indoors or into greenhouses during the colder months. 

Aeoniums are native to the Canary Islands, North Africa and Madeira, with rosettes of waxy leaves in a wide range of sizes and colours. A. ‘Zwartkop’ is tall and almost black and looks good grown alongside pink pelargoniums, while A. tabuliforme resembles a lime green mandala. 

TAKE A SEAT 

Use garden furniture to create the holiday atmosphere you desire. 

For a New England aesthetic, choose tasteful hardwood Adirondack chairs and loungers covered in smart marine stripes. 

Rattan furniture adds a laid-back atmosphere. If you are lucky enough to be going away this year, buy an outside ornament to remind you of your travels. 

Hang a Greek mask from your fence, place a Buddha on your patio or grow herbs in old Spanish chilli pepper tins.