Derek Jarman was an iconic British filmmaker, artist, writer, and passionate gardener. By combining an artist’s perspective with horticultural knowledge, he grew his own creative garden-paradise in an extremely challenging growing environment. Let’s dig into these 11 creative gardening ideas inspired by Jarman’s Prospect Cottage and see how they can be applied to our own artistic gardens.
1. Garden as an Extension of Home
Prospect Cottage and Derek Jarman’s garden were inseparable. The stark black fisherman’s cottage with its signature yellow trim sets the perfect backdrop for his colorful garden, spilling out from all sides. Jarman’s creative garden is a true extension of his living space.
Gardener’s takeaway: Look at your home’s architecture and colors, and find ways to echo them in your garden. Whether through plant choices, materials, or pathways, let your garden feel like an extension of your living space rather than a separate entity.
Plant pick: Opium poppies (Papaver somniferum) & California poppies (Eschscholzia californica)
2. Embrace the Elements
Rather than trying to fight against the barren shingle (a British term for a pebbled shore) of Dungeness, Jarman leaned into the rugged environment. He thoughtfully selected a mix of native and cultivated plants that could survive the salt air, poor soil, and relentless wind. His garden was an act of adaptation rather than control.
Gardener’s takeaway: In your own space, work with the land. If you have dry, rocky soil, choose drought-tolerant plants. If you have shade, lean into ferns and woodland textures. Instead of seeing limitations, see what thrives naturally—and let that shape your vision.
Plant pick: Gorse (ulex europaeus)
3. Use a Striking, Signature Color Palette
Prospect Cottage was painted tar-black with canary yellow window frames, a bold contrast against the muted tones of the surrounding landscape. His garden color palette reflected a painter’s sensibility, favoring silvery greens, soft purples, and occasional fiery bursts of red and orange.
Gardener’s takeaway: To create a cohesive space, choose colors that echo or contrast with your home and natural surroundings. A restricted palette makes even a wild, free-form garden feel aesthetically intentional, like Jarman’s did.
4. Use Texture as Much as Color
Jarman’s plant choices weren’t just about color; they were about form. He paired the spiky blue heads of sea holly against soft thrift, the feathery movement of grasses beside smooth stones, and the architectural drama of alliums among the silver foliage of sea kale.
Gardener’s takeaway: Think beyond flowers—contrast rough and smooth, spiky and soft, structured and fluid. A successful garden, like a painting, is as much about texture as it is about color.
Plant pick: Sea kale (Crambe maritima)
5. Incorporate Found Objects
Jarman’s garden was as much a gallery of found objects as it was a garden. He arranged driftwood, rusted metal, and sea-worn stones into sculptural compositions, often positioning them with a painter’s eye for balance and form.
Gardener’s takeaway: In your garden, let found materials become part of the story. Weathered wood, salvaged metal, or even an old ceramic pot can add texture and meaning. Instead of traditional decor, consider how the objects you find (or that find you) can shape the space.
6. Create a Sense of Wildness
Jarman didn’t impose strict order on his garden. In the English cottage garden style, he allowed plants to self-seed and spread naturally, creating an organic, shifting landscape that looked both effortless and intentional.
Gardener’s takeaway: Try planting self-seeders like poppies, verbena, or Queen Anne’s lace, allowing them to move through the garden freely. Rather than constantly editing, observe how they choose to grow—and let them surprise you.
Plant pick: Red valerian (Centranthus ruber)
7. Let the Sky and Light Be Part of the Garden Design
Prospect Cottage’s garden was deeply connected to the vast sky above it. With no fences or tall trees, the changing clouds, shifting sunlight, and expansive horizon became part of the composition. The colorful garden against the stark environment and power plant makes it even more joyful and alive.
Gardener’s takeaway: In your own garden, consider how light moves through the space. Let plants catch the evening sun, frame a view, or use open areas to let the sky become an integral part of the garden’s feel.
8. Choose Tough, Resilient Plants
Jarman’s plant choices were dictated by what could survive in Dungeness: hardy, salt-tolerant, drought-resistant species that could endure neglect. He embraced sea kale, valerian, lavender, thrift, and euphorbias—plants that would thrive with little intervention.
Gardener’s takeaway: Select plants that can handle your environment’s extremes. If you garden in a drought-prone area, look for deep-rooted natives or Mediterranean plants that thrive with minimal water. Resilience can be just as beautiful as delicacy.
Plant pick: Spiny sowthistle (Sonchus asper)
9. Make Space for Silence and Reflection
Jarman’s creative garden was his place of refuge—where he could slow down, watch the shifting light on the shingle, and simply exist within the vast openness of Dungeness. The garden gave him a space to flourish and create while facing his own mortality, where the ephemeral is as meaningful as the enduring.
Gardener’s takeaway: Create a quiet corner in your own space: a small bench under a tree, a stone circle, or a simple gravel area where you can listen to the wind. A garden should be more than visual—it should offer space to be still.
10. Allow Decay to Be Beautiful
Jarman didn’t try to “tidy” his garden into perfection. He found beauty in weathered surfaces, the slow oxidation of metal, and the way plants faded and returned. His garden embraced time, allowing it to leave its mark.
Gardener’s takeaway: Rather than constantly clearing away dead stalks and seed heads, leave some through winter to catch frost and shadow. Allow certain elements—like wood or stone—to age naturally. A garden that acknowledges time is one that feels alive.
11. Let Your Garden Be a Personal Expression
Jarman’s garden wasn’t just a collection of plants—it was a deeply personal act of defiance, creativity, and presence. His creative gardening reflected his filmmaker’s eye, his poetic nature, and his response to his own mortality.
Gardener’s takeaway: Your garden should be an extension of you. Whether that means using colors that move you, arranging objects with artistic intention, or planting something in memory of a loved one, make it personal. A garden is more than a landscape—it’s a language.