Bringing the Tuscan sun into your own garden and giving it a Mediterranean design is a worthwhile project. What could be nicer than sitting and relaxing on a terrace surrounded by herbs and espaliered fruit? The following tips show how the dream of a Tuscan-style garden becomes a tangible reality.
A garden in Tuscany - how can the garden dream be transferred to Germany?
1. Tip: take the location into account
Whether a garden is redesigned or newly created, the location plays an essential role in the implementation of a Mediterranean garden in the Tuscan style. First and foremost, Tuscan gardens need a lot of light, warmth and sun. If your own garden is rather shady, the Tuscany project in your own garden falls into the water at this point. On the other hand, plots facing south or south-west are ideal. If possible, bed areas receive sun from morning to evening. In addition, it is important that Mediterranean plants can be protected from wind, moisture and cold. A house wall or a roof, such as that offered by a balcony, serve as protection. Greenhouses or bright basement rooms, in which potted plants can overwinter if necessary, are ideal.
2. Tip: Rethink the planned use
When designing any garden, including the Tuscan garden, you have to think about who will use the garden quietly and on which. Should children play in the garden, are there chickens, cats or dogs that need exercise in the garden? Should there be space for cheerful garden parties or for a chic greenhouse in which the hibernate Mediterranean potted plants? If you want to harvest herbs, vegetables or fruit in your Mediterranean garden, you should also take this into account when planning. In this way, for example, terraces and play areas, herb beds and fruit trellises can be included in the planning
Garden room
In order to cleverly combine the different functional areas with one another, it has proven useful to plan different garden rooms. The individual garden areas can be ideally delimited by hedges. In any case, hedges are an important design element in the garden of Tuscany. They not only serve to separate the functional areas from one another, but also provide the typical Mediterranean flair.
Consider maintenance effort
Of course, it is advisable to rethink the various uses in terms of maintenance. Anyone who opts for the concept of the garden room and plants a lot of hedges must take into account the care that will arise with it in the following years. Hedges belong in a Tuscan garden and have to be tended regularly to keep the growth in check. That means a regular pruning with a robust and powerful hedge trimmer. The device is also used to cut bushes into shape or to skillfully prune large lavender bushes.
Mediterranean potted plants require special attention and pruning should be carried out according to instructions and always with high-quality, cleanly cutting rose shears. Herb gardens are relatively low-maintenance, but regular pruning as well as dividing or thinning the herbs for rejuvenation is a regular requirement. Perennial beds also want to be cared for. Pruning, fertilization, irrigation and winter protection are topics that garden owners have to deal with intensively before they can make the southern garden dream come true.
3rd tip: Take the defining elements of the Tuscany garden into account
The Mediterranean design in a Tuscany garden succeeds through the use of certain stylistic devices. The Tuscan garden can be described as a kind of Mediterranean farm garden. Natural wood is characteristic, be it in the garden furniture or the pergola, as well as the use of terracotta and ceramics.
All in all, the Tuscan garden style is rustic. Mediterranean vegetables such as tomatoes, artichokes and courgettes can be grown in style in the Tuscany garden. Lemon or orange trees kept in potted plants as well as figs and peaches on the trellis are attractive and typical of a Tuscan garden.
Inviting seats in the shade
Inviting, shady seats are also typical of the Tuscan garden style. In the practice there are generously dimensioned terraces made of natural stone, which are covered by a shady pergola. The pergola can be ideally topped up, which contributes to the quality of stay. Social Gathering, Eating and drinking are very important in Tuscany, so that an outdoor kitchen can be integrated into a Tuscan garden, which is based on German customs.
It is also advisable to cover the pergola with an airy Roman awning. The awning can be opened if necessary and offers effective sun protection, especially in the first few years before the climbing plants have overgrown the pergola.
4. Tip: Choose your plants carefully
A highlight when planning the Tuscan garden is the selection of woody plants, shrubs and grasses. Whoever has taken tip 2 to heart, namely thinking about the planned use, automatically limits the selection of plants. Without these preliminary considerations, the selection can be made less specifically. The general weather conditions at the location also play a role in the selection of plants. In a region where the winters are more moderate and mild, the selection of available Mediterranean plants is greater than in a garden that is, for example, in the south of Bavaria and has to struggle with meter-high snow year after year. Citrus plants are not frost hardy, but there are hardy woody plants such as the olive tree or the fig tree. The passion flower also survives mild winters.
From big to small: tips for planting planning
When planning the planting, it is advisable to first select the large trees and then the smaller shrubs. The next step is the selection of the perennials and finally the additional ground cover and herbs. The following large trees are considered for a Tuscan garden:
- Mediterranean snowball (Viburnum tinus)
- Column cypress (Cupressus sempervirens)
- Olive (Olea europaea)
- Mulberry (Morus rubra)
- Evergreen magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora)
The following types, for example, are suitable as container plants:
- Lemon trees (Citrus limon)
- Orange trees (Citrus sinensis)
- Lantana camara
- Kumquat (Fortunella margarita)
- Oleander (Nerium oleander)
- Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia suaveolens)
- African Lilies (Agapanthus africanus)
- Triplet flower, wonder flower (Bougainvillea glabra)
The range of possible container plants is wide. The same applies to the selection of perennials, grasses and the Planting Mediterranean herbs. These are listed below with their German names without any botanical specification.
- lavender
- sun hat
- Mullein
- Chaste tree
- Catnip
- Milkweed
- Dwarf silver diamond
- Feather grass
- rosemary
- sage
- mugwort
- Tarragon
- Wermut
It is advisable to seek advice from a specialist gardening company when it comes to choosing Mediterranean plants. This is particularly true with regard to the location and the existing soil quality. Because the purchase of the plants represents a large cost item and it should be ensured that the growth rate is high. If the plants are planted in an unsuitable location, sooner or later many of them will die or show poor growth. Since the planting is an essential design element that characterizes a Tuscan garden, the planning and creation of the beds should be done carefully and with professional support.
Last updated: 26.01.2024
