5 low-maintenance plants to give a garden a chic hotel look

Garden dining table and chairs complete with white parasol on a garden patio, surrounded by greenery in pots and planters. — (Image credit: Future PLC/ Colin Poole)

Jump to category:

1. Lavender
2. Box honeysuckle
3. Japanese holly
4. Pittosporum
5. Mexican feather grass

Now, in the midst of bank holiday weekends away and summer holidays to look forward to, I’m always impressed by the pretty plants you spot on the grounds of hotels. So, I asked the experts, and they have recommended five low-maintenance plants to give your garden a chic hotel look.

Low-maintenance planting is not only a key gardening trend for this year, but also every lazy gardener's dream. Low-effort shrubs and low-maintenance fragrant pot plants don’t need much upkeep to look their best, making them a great choice for anyone who doesn’t have hours to spend tending their gardens.

Low-maintenance plants can look incredibly chic, too. If you’re striving for that boutique hotel look, but have loads of time and effort to spare, these are the low-maintenance plants experts recommend to give your garden a chic and elegant look.

1. Lavender

Lavender is a Mediterranean planting staple and, in my opinion, deserves a place in every garden. Not only does it smell amazing, but it also attracts bees and butterflies for a happy garden ecosystem.

large garden with neat lawn and row of lavender at the edge bordering path and garden room and blue sun chair

‘Many hotel gardens include Lavender in their gardens as they are easy to care for, needing minimal maintenance, are drought-tolerant once established and hardy to most pests and diseases,' says Lucie Bradley, gardens and greenhouse expert at Easy Garden Irrigation.

'In addition, English Lavender, such as ‘Hidcote’, is extremely hardy, and when positioned in full sun and pruned twice a year to prevent it from becoming sparse by keeping it bushy with new growth, you can expect to have lavender thriving in your garden for well over ten years.'

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2. Box honeysuckle

This fast-growing shrub has gorgeous glossy green leaves, sprouting white flowers in the spring, followed by purple berries. It’s also a fragranced shrub, offering a delicate, light scent that attracts bees to your garden.

Purple berries from a box honesuckle shrub.

‘Box honeysuckle is one of the best options for achieving the clipped, structured look you see in luxury hotel courtyards and formal entrance areas. It's often used as a substitute for a traditional box because it responds well to trimming and naturally holds a dense, small-leaved shape,’ says Patrick Martin, horticulture specialist at Frantoio Grove.

‘It can be clipped into low hedges, neat borders, or simple rounded forms that immediately make a space feel ordered and intentional. One of its biggest advantages is that it stays green all year, so even in winter, the garden still looks cared for rather than bare or tired. Once it has settled in, it only needs a light trim once or twice a year to keep its shape sharp, which is why it works so well in low-maintenance designs.’

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3. Japanese holly

One of the best hedging plants you can use, Japanese holly is often favoured by fancy hotels for crafting stunning topiary displays.

Ilex crenata (Japanese holly) hedging in a garden

‘With dense, evergreen foliage of glossy, dark green leaves it is not only easy to care for, being disease resistant, adaptable to different types of soil and suitable for positions in full sun or partial shade, the fact that this is a slow growing shrub means it doesn’t need to be pruned often, although is happy to tolerate frequent trimming if you want to keep it perfectly shaped for structural topiary or Cloud Trees which are increasing in popularity,’ says Lucie.

‘Perfect to grow large pots filled with slightly acidic, well-draining soil, you can place one on either side of your front door to make a statement entrance or use them planted as formal hedging. It’s also the perfect addition to garden borders, providing year-round structure, especially when trimmed into neat shapes.’

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4. Pittosporum

Another fragranced shrub, pittosporum, is one of the best evergreen shrubs for borders and goes with anything! It has pretty, silver-green leaves and will stop your garden looking bare in winter.

Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Wrinkled Blue' plant

‘Pittosporum brings a slightly softer but still very polished structure. The rounded varieties are especially useful because they naturally form tidy, cloud-like shapes that look curated even without constant attention,’ says Patrick.

‘The leaves are glossy and dense, which adds a sense of depth and finish, particularly in shaded areas or around seating where you want the planting to feel calm and deliberate. It also holds its form well over time, so it continues to look controlled even if you leave it alone for long periods, with only occasional shaping needed to keep it looking crisp.’

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5. Mexican feather grass

Ornamental grasses are often a staple of hotel planting, and with graceful, swaying plumes, it’s easy to see why. They’re a plant that I think makes your garden look instantly expensive. Plus, May is a great time to plant Mexican feather grass in your garden.

‘When you love to add movement and texture to your garden in a natural way, then using the thin, silky, hair-like blades of Mexican feather grass is the low-maintenance way to achieve this,’ says Lucie.

‘A popular perennial ornamental grass often used in hotel gardens and resorts, Mexican feather grass excels when planted in garden borders or in groups, where its swaying, fountain-like blades almost appear to ‘dance’ in the slightest of breezes, perfect if you are sat outside and want soothing movement and gentle sounds.’

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If you want your garden to feel like a constant holiday, these plants will certainly help give it the right look. Which one is your favourite?

Kezia Reynolds joined the Ideal Home team as News Writer in September 2024. After graduating from City, University of London in 2022 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, Kezia kicked off her career spending two years working on women’s weekly magazines. She is always on the lookout for the latest home news, finding you the best deals and trends - so you don’t miss a thing!