August is the best time to see the gaps in your garden.
If you have one that won't be filled by spring foliage, take the opportunity to create a focal point. Find or buy your centrepiece - in this case a sandstone basin atop a concrete plinth. Plenty of choices are
available at garden centres and craft markets. If you don't want to buy one, find a beautifully textured piece of driftwood, an old fencepost or a piece of found art.
Four pieces of timber nailed together provide the bed - if making mitred corners is beyond you, don't despair, because the foliage will cover up your simple joinery in no time.
Fill the base with good soil and set your sculpture or artwork in the centre. Surround with a circle of pebbles or chip. Plant the perimeter with a low-growing, compact grass of your choice or, if you want to hide the timber, choose a grass such as Carex comans Frosted Curls, which will hang over the edge.
If your centrepiece is white, set it in a circle of white shell and surround with black Mondo for a great contrast.
