Chris Brown is someone who has an incredibly intimate knowledge and understanding of plants. As well as studying at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew for three years, he has also travelled extensively through Europe and much further afield. So when he talks about a resilient plant, he probably has in mind something he saw in the rugged mountain peaks of the Alps or the Himalayas - a plant that is tough enough to grow in a rock crevice at the mercy of all sorts of extreme weather. Until recently, Chris was the head gardener at Highlands garden in East Sussex, where he established an experimental, multi-habitat garden and was able to grow an extraordinarily diverse range of plants. He has now moved to nearby Newick Park, where he has plenty of exciting plans for developing its 20 acres of garden.
Bringing back to the UK and applying what he has learned from his travels, Chris is adamant that we should be planting a diverse mix of non-native plants alongside natives as the climate changes around us. 'The botanical richness of this country is so important,' he explains. 'We need a much more diverse suite of plants if we're going to get through this climate disaster and we need to be bringing in these resilient plants from all over the world to support our ecology. The best way to find resilient plants is to experiment with as many different species as possible and observe which ones do best in your garden. They will be different for everyone, because we all have different settings, aspects and soil. For me, a good plant has to be tough and useful, as well as beautiful. It has to add ecology and have a long season of interest.'
Many of the plants that Chris grew while he was at Highlands have these qualities, providing a framework of reliable and low-maintenance hard-workers, which could be surrounded by other more ephemeral plants. Chris cites Pinus mugo as one of the best architectural evergreens that will grow in the driest of conditions. 'It is an Alpine plant that grows at the top of rugged mountains, where it is constantly battered by wind, rain, ice and extreme drought or heat. Texturally it is lovely, forming its ownbonsai-like shape,' he says, before praising Hakonechloa macra for similar versatility. ‘It will grow in sun or shade, dry or wet. In Japan, it is a shady streamside plant, where it thrives in a rocky habitat along shallow stream edges. In the summer, these streams can dry up entirely, so it is also adapted to conditions of drought.’
Chris also recommends self-seeding plants such as Cephalaria alpina, Althaca cannabina and Verbena hastata f. rosea. 'The self-sowers are extremely valuable and great for giving a wilder look,' he notes. 'If a plant is self-sown, it's stronger and more resilient, because it has found exactly the place where it wants to be.' One plant that he likes to include in all of his garden planting plans is the common fennel, Foeniculum vulgare (or the bronze form), which self-seeds with ease. 'It is not an unusual plant, but it is super drought tolerant and edible, and has good winter structure. It is also excellent for wildlife,' he continues. 'We all need to think about what else these plants are doing - it is not just about the aesthetics. Beauty lures people in and will get them engaged, but the wildlife has to come first.'
10 climate-resilient plants
Known as the moon carrot, this monocarpic plant takes three years to flower then dies, hopefully self-seeding before it goes. With glaucous foliage and white umbels, it's good for pollinators and drought tolerant. Chris calls it 'a fantastic structural plant'.
This dwarf pine needs almost no maintenance once established. Its narrow needles stay green all year round, whatever extremes of weather it experiences.
A low-growing euphorbia with small blue-grey leaves and succulent stems, it grows on limestone hills and mountains in the Mediterranean, nestling in rock cracks on exposed slopes. 'Its appearance tells you it will survive in tough environments,' says Chris.
This tall, elegant heuchera is unusual in tolerating shade or sun, but is at its best in shade or semi-shade. Flowering for a long period from late in July until October, it produces long wands of small creamy white flowers that move in the breeze.
Though its flowers appear on spikes rather than in branching clusters, as with Verbena bonariensis, this grows in similarly dry conditions but tolerates winter wet. 'It's a good self-sower in dense planting,' Chris says, 'with a long flowering season and good winter structure.' Rosea is his favourite form, with small pale pinky-mauve flowers held in upright spires.
This useful grass can be planted in sun or shade, tolerating periods of drought and flooding. With a fresh green colour through spring and summer, it turns shades of orange and gold in autumn. 'It's great for providing movement and sound,' Chris enthuses.
Common fennel is an easy-to-grow umbellifer ideal for a wilder, naturalistic border and it will self-sow into niches. With acid-yellow flowers that attract hundreds of different insects, it also has aromatic, feathery leaves and will hold its shape in winter.
This declining British wildflower grows from a tuber, which helps to support the plant in a drought. With punky, deep purple thistle flowers loved by bees, it is tall and upright with long;, narrow and slightly hairy leaves. Chris explains, 'The hairs increase humidity around the leaf, reducing evapotranspiration.'
Part of the mallow family, this is tall with sugar-pink flowers that last for most of summer. It is drought-tolerant and needs little maintenance: as the blooms die off gracefully, no deadheading is required. It self-sows gently and the hollow stems will stand through winter, creating a good habitat for insects.
This scabious from the Alps can reach 1.8 metres but is not as vigorous or invasive as Cephalaria gigantea. Super drought tolerant, it has soft yellow blooms that are great for pollinators, morphing into globe-like seed heads after its flowers have dropped. It will gently self-sow in dry and gravelly conditions.
