Here's a gardening tip from Elspeth Thompson, author of New Decorated Garden.

Modern gardens are more than a motley collection of plants around a lawn. These days, our outside spaces are as likely to contain furniture, sculpture, lighting and heating as any room inside - some may even have a fireplace, a hot tub or a place to work or sleep.

Trees and plants combine with all the other decorative elements to create individual outdoor worlds - well-designed one-off spaces in which children can play, adults can entertain, family and friends can relax, socialize, read, meditate or do nothing at all.

There's more to outdoor sculpture than concrete cherubs. Containers are a fantastic way to create both instant and lasting style in your garden. A few attractive plants in well'chosen pots can transform the dullest, barest garden in the space of a few hours, while smaller treasures, placed at eye level or grouped around doors or windows, can give pleasure all year round.

Succulents whose leaves form a geometric rosette are strong sculptural presences in themselves. They look good displayed with a flat carved rock in a shallow bowl topped with a gravel mulch.

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