Anne Swithinbank
A keen fruit, vegetable and house-plant grower, Anne was formerly the glasshouse supervisor at RHS Garden Wisley.
Ashley Edwards
As a head gardener with charity Horatio’s Garden, Ashley enjoys sharing his passion for plants.
Pippa Greenwood
Pippa is one of the foremost experts on pests and diseases. She gardens using organic methods.
Q What can I plant as a ‘lawn’ in our gravel garden?
Steph Jarrett, by email
A ASHLEY SAYS It’s great to think of lawn alternatives, as turf is often very high maintenance, and if mown regularly, provides little attraction to pollinators and other beneficial insects.
I would recommend trying chamomile. It has attractive, blue-grey foliage and daisy-like flowers which pollinators adore. The best part of this plant is the scent. It’s reminiscent of apples and will release the scent if you walk on it or crush the leaves.
You will need to deadhead it to stop the plant from becoming patchy, or go for the dwarf, non-flowering variety ‘Treneague’.
Another option to consider if the conditions are very dry is plants from the thyme family. Again, these are highly scented plants and form a spreading carpet with beautiful flowers in summer. They
