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ropen it rectrget lock pical can onal sign ople on't can n or prooint roperry ding s all feet boxy give lan, give rved igacan king Peony Hosta Double African Daisy paint picked up from your local hardware store. Further formalize the garden and keep it tidy by adding stone pavers along bed borders. If you are on a budget, try paving just a portion of the border's edge. In this garden, Mia added stone cobble pavers on either side the garden (see the areas marked in heavy black). Use colour to unify your space When it comes to design, Mia recommends starting with a narrow colour palette of up to three choices and then working within this range of shades. Here, she used pink, yellow and white. You can change up the colours slightly to signify different spaces, but maintain one colour throughout to unify the space. Mia based the colour scheme on plants and trees her clients wanted to keep, including a lilac tree, rose bush, phlox and camellia. The pink and purple shades of all these plants, combined with the cottage feeling of the existing rose and lilac, formed the foundation of her design. Even though the property was modest, Mia set out to create distinct zones in the backyard, including a play space for young children, a cutting garden, a cool border and bright border. It can make the space seem larger if there is a number of distinct garden "rooms" throughout the space, she says. Mass plantings are modern and can be low maintenance, but may not provide enough interest, especially for plant lovers. "In a smaller garden, it can be nice to have a mix of plant material," says Mia. "When mass plantings are out of season, the space can look very empty." CHILDREN'S AREA pumpkins, green beans, assorted herbs, Chinese lanterns, lavender, daisy COOL BORDERS toad lily, delphinium, black mondo grass, artemisia, hosta (substitute current euphorbia with a lime green, blue-green plant) BRIGHT BORDER calamagrostis, euphorbia, Oriental lily, 'Patty's Purple' hebe, peony April 2013 BC HOME & garden | 47 p46-49_StandardLot.indd 47 13-03-14 11:29 AM