Noel Kingsbury

Projects

Most of the design projects I have been involved with over the last few years have been large scale or in the public sphere. All have been about selecting robust plants suitable for the ecology of the site, and which can be expected to compete with each other successfully. Keeping the site weed free during the establishment phase (the first two to three years) is vital; after this things can be ‘let go’ much more. The result will be an increasing density of vegetation as clump-forming perennials spread, and seedlings begin to appear. ‘Conventional’ plantings appear sparse and gappy by comparison – the idea is that as the density of desired plants increases and begins to approach that of ‘natural’ vegetation, the opportunity for the infiltration of aggressive weedy species decreases. In this way, a stable vegetation community begins to develop. This is all very similar to the concept of ‘enhanced nature’ developed by my colleagues Nigel Dunnett and James Hitchmough at Sheffield University.