All About Asteraceae

Asteraceae is otherwise known as the daisy family, and its 32,000 known species (only orchidaceae has more) includes many much-loved garden flowers such as the sunflower, chrysanthemum, dahlias and of course, asters. All About Asteraceae celebrates this beautiful, versatile family in seven glorious beds created by recent graduates of the London College of Garden Design

For the Birds

For the Birds

Designed by Brian Youngblut

The number of wild birds in Britain has fallen by 73 million since 1970, meaning Britain has lost almost a third of all its wild birds. Gardens can play an important part in giving wild bird populations a fighting chance, by planting flowering species that are a rich food source for birds, abundant in edible seeds or fruit. The Asteraceae family includes a number of these species, such as Helianthus, Echinacea, Rudbeckia and more, many of which are featured in this border, to inspire gardeners across the UK to plant for the birds.

A Reinvention of Yellow

Designed by Garden Girls Collective (Melissa Wilkinson, Rachel Barnard, Annie Shephard and Bev Small)

This bright border asks why many gardeners’ have an aversion to yellow in their borders. Yellow is joyous and redolent of sunshine. The design shows how yellow can zip a palette together like no other colour. Blending a selection of blooms from the Asteraceae family with grasses, spires, structural planting and complementary pops of colour, layering up palette, texture and form to create a fresh vision for planting.

A Reinvention of Yellow

Summer Haze

Summer Haze

Designed by Kate Brown

This wildlife-friendly border shows a selection of Asteraceae that we can grow in the UK, focusing on the plant family’s range and differences in adaptability to moisture content in the soil, ranging from drought tolerant plants to moisture loving varieties. The grassland of Home Park and the Long Water at Hampton are echoed in the yellow, gold, orange and pink planting scheme and the linear design. A small pool emphasises the link to the moisture-loving planting that surrounds it, as well as providing a water source for garden wildlife.
 

Fabulous Foliage

Designed by Kate CampbellSally-Anne Rees and William Murray

While the huge Asteraceae family is perhaps best known for its flowers, this border looks at foliage and how to create dynamic planting schemes that hold their own before the first blooms appear and long after they have faded. Cynara cardunculus Scolymus Group (globe artichoke), Artemisia abrotanum (southernwood), Achillea ‘Credo’ agm (yarrow), Liatris spicata ‘Alba’ (prairie feather) and lesser-known Olearia virgata var. lineata ‘Dartonii’ (daisy bush) – have been chosen to create structure and drama through their contrasting leaf shapes, textures and hues.

Fabulous Foliage

The Flower Power Field

The Flower Power Field

Designed by Kathryn Cox and Acacia Gardens
Sponsored by Acacia Gardens and Ella James


The Flower Power Field is a tribute to the iconic Woodstock Festival. This border is conceived as an imagined place to chill out between bands. A small tepee, hung with Asteraceae garlands is pitched amid a field of kaleidoscopic Asteraceae and grasses, which bask in the sun. Signs adorned with hippie slogans channel the Woodstock spirit: ‘Flower Power’, ‘Peace’ and ‘Love’.

Healing Power

Designed by Adam Phoenix

This border has been designed to emphasise the healing power of plants in the Asteraceae family. For millennia, traditional medicine has relied on plants to treat a vast range of symptoms and illnesses. A seat is tucked into the border, providing a place to sit, relax and feel immersed in the healing embrace of nature, safe in the knowledge that plants have the power to heal in more ways than one.
 

Fabulous Foliage

A Walk Along the River

A Walk Along the River

Designed by Oliver Wheeler

Inspired in part by the surroundings of Home Park, many of the plants used in this naturalistic border can be found growing wild around the showground. Cleft chestnut fencing divides the plot into three bays. A riverbed meanders through the centre, with planting on either side including grasses, a multi-stem Prunus serrula for height and additional interest, and of course a plethora of Asteraceae, including Achillea millefolium (yarrow), Leucanthemum vulgare (oxeye daisy), Cynara cardunculus (cardoon), Cirsium rivulare (plume thistle).

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