COMING SOON
COMING SOON
Resilient planting for hot, dry summers
A layered, naturalistic perennial planting plan designed in particular for Canterbury’s dry summers, colder winters and free-draining soils, but it works anywhere with similar growing conditions.
The Dry Garden brings together drought-tolerant perennials and grasses that thrive with less water while creating the movement, texture and changing seasonal interest of a naturalistic garden.
Designed for: Canterbury
Conditions: Free-draining soil · Full sun · Hot, dry summers
Style: Naturalistic · New perennial · Layered planting
Designed around Canterbury’s conditions
Canterbury gardens experience some of New Zealand’s biggest seasonal contrasts: hot, dry summers, cold winters and periods of strong, drying wind.
Plants that need consistently moist soil can struggle through summer, while anything too tender may be caught out when winter temperatures fall.
This plan is being designed specifically around those conditions.
Rather than relying on frequent watering to keep the garden looking good, the planting uses resilient perennials and grasses that can establish deeply, cope with periods of dryness and still provide structure, flower and movement through the seasons.
Coming soon
The Dry Garden is currently being developed.
Join the list and we'll let you know as soon as the complete planting plan is ready to download.
Let me know when the planting plan becomes available
What the complete plan will include
The finished Plan.t garden plan will give you everything you need to recreate the planting at home, including:
A complete top-down planting layout
Exact plant quantities
Plant spacing and mature sizes
A carefully selected drought-tolerant plant palette
Soil preparation guidance for dry, free-draining sites
Planting and establishment instructions
Watering guidance
Seasonal maintenance
Suitable plant substitutions
Guidance for adapting the plan to your own site
The planting character
Expect drifts of flowering perennials woven through grasses and lower-growing plants, with a lighter, more open character than the lush Clay Garden.
Soft purples, dusty pinks, silvery foliage and warm grass tones create colour without relying on constant flowering, while seed heads and dried stems continue to provide structure after summer has passed.
The different layers are designed to knit together as the garden matures, covering the ground while still keeping the loose, airy quality that makes dry naturalistic planting feel alive.