Message Board - Weather: Should our planting strategy change?

In recent times, and even on this message board I've read more and more about how people's plants have been affected by the unseasonal weather the UK seems to experience now.

Have we arrived at the point where we should start thinking about planting out species that are more suitable for the increasingly mild and dry weather? This would probably see a complete shift in the appearance of landscapes and gardens over time, but has the time arrived to make that change?

I think we will see a gradual move to planting more drought resistant species, or the development of efficient irrigation.

Underground irrigation with seep hoses is popular in many countries with a hot dry climate. But it's only okay if yer got the water in the first place!!

A lot of planting schemes follow the fashions and trends set by the designers of show gardens at the various shows, Chelsea being an obvious example.

Some designers are acutely aware of the need for sustainable plantings, and can achieve a good effect or novel design when incorporated fully into their design.

Some designers, however, add a few token plants to give them the tick in the box marked sustainable planting, or environmentally friendly planting, so they do.

I suspect we will see more exotic plants coming to the fore, with all this talk about global warming. But only a few years ago people started planting Cordyline everywhere, and then we had the heavy snow last year which killed a lot of them off. I travel a lot up and down the country and regularly see dead Cordylines in motorway service station car parks, so before I start planting the latest 'must have' plant, I make sure it will tolerate the whole range of weather patterns it can expect to receive.

Fashions will come and go, just like which plant is the 'in plant' or must have in the garden, but the old favourites and reliable flowers will always remain constant. I won't be rushing out to plant cacti or other desert plants in my garden because we had a dry summer last year.