Have a look for Cercis canadensis 'Lavender Twist' - its a weeping form which only gets 8 feet (I think it was feet) but the branches do, eventually, dangle down to the ground. Paler flowers than the basic species, but great against the darkness of the bare wood.
As for the advice, Suzie - follow it if you want, but in the end, that's a designer's advice - its your garden, do what you like in it! I could tell you to only buy art works for your walls by 'known' artists - but you're the one looking at them, so its what you like that counts.

Can't really comment on the Cercis candensis though I think I read it grows to about 10 metres in height.

I'd take what James Alexander-Sinclair said with a large pinch of salt. It is entirely your choice how many different plant species you have in your garden. So long as your are happy with how it looks then that is the important thing.

This James guy certainly wouldn't like our garden then!

At the last count, I grow over 1500 different plants. As my English teacher said many years ago, just before our 'O' level exam: "Obey all the rules, pass the exam, then break them."

I came home and looked at my plot and thought ....what rubbish! to be honest lol
I do realise the danger of too many "spot "plants but i always make sure theres a reasonable clump of anything and frankly he was just spouting the party line of repeat planting ,never plant less than three or more ect ect.
We were offered a free sit down twenty minutes with him and although he did give me some good advice I found his knowledge of individual plants suprisingly lacking and it ended up with James writing things I was mentioning down :-))))
The Cercis planted in the gardens were only around six foot tall and looked like quite old trees,so I'm assuming that it must be possible to keep them small but will certainly check out "Lavender Twist" ,thanks Bamboo.
Sadly it doesnt have the purple colouring for the leaves it seems Bamboo.

I believe it is often the practise to stool C, Canadensis Forest Pansy so you get lovely large leaves, and they really are beautiful, but I've always wondered if the roots keep growing regardless of what is done to the top? I have C. Lavender Twist. Mine's about 6 feet high at the moment in a south facing border. I can't say I'm impressed so far. There were a couple of flowers on the trunk and that was it. I was expecting a show stopping sight lol and it was very late in leaf. Perhaps it needs better weather than we usually have in this country or maybe it takes a few years to settle? :-)

Go for it Susie... the only way you will know if it is going to work is if you try!

My thought is that some professional gardeners/designers like to see huge sweeps of this and that. Those of us who have normal size gardens want to see variety! So Meconopsis, Iris and Roscoea all crammed in one bed along with various primulas a birch tree stump with a Clematis alpina growing over it and various other bits and pieces. I don't want a manicured everything in its place garden - though I totally support anyone that does... ours is off the wall cottage garden as a best description :-)

Oh my - experts! How on earth can any one gardener tell another what to grow in his/her garden? It beggars belief!

I really could have a rant, but I shall count to 10 (several times!) and forget it!

10 - probably several thousand Melchisedec - arrogance!

Awful, isn't it? I just don't know where to begin, so I shan't!!! Lol (well - you have to, don't you?)
I keep thinking of things I'd like to say to J A-S and his ilk, but they're terribly rude!

Half the pleasure of gardening is making the mistakes and getting to plant something new and I can't imagine never going to a plant fair again because I have my "allotted" number of plants .Its totally unrealistic and as everyone has suggested ,very much a case of personal taste .Googling it seems it was the original forest pansy and it did have huge leaves .I'll add a photo:-)

I think I've found my plant ....gorgeous !
http://www.treetyme.co.uk/ruby-falls-%C2%AE/

Great, do put up photos for us once it is in its new home

It's like the 'experts' telling us what the latest trend is in planting or what this year's "must have" plant is. I tell people their garden is their own personal space and plant what they like. If you want to plant orange marigolds next to pink petunias, then do it (just don't ask me to come and look at it! - lol)

He would need smelling salts in my garden what a load of horsemuck !! "inspire" !!!

Gg

Oh lord, Andrew, orange and pink together - I can't stand bright yellow and pink together either - but maybe some people love it, so as long as I haven't got to look at all the time, that's just fine, as you say.
Bornagain, thanks for the heads up re Lavender Twist - I've never seen it, not even for sale, but when you read about it, it sounds fab, and the pics look fantastic.

Bamboo, the pics do look fantastic, but I've a feeling they won't flower in quite the same way over here unless we get a very warm and sunny start...is such a thing possible lol?:-)

Well, a warm and sunny middle and end would be good, never mind a sunny start... too late for that this year...

Dry would be a good start the fields are waterlogged and I think Bulba will need more than wellies to go and lift some tatties for our dinner.

We have numerous tubs that are normally filled with the usual marigolds and petunias, etc. This year i've tried some new "foliage plants" in containers of their own, that have just germinated after sowing them a couple of weeks ago. Spaced between the flowering containers, I think these spring onions will look very effective :)

20 metres by 20 metres is 63 feet and a bit by 63 feet and a bit. That is a big area. Our Crevice garden area is 7 metres by 10 metres.
Most folks gardens these days are not that size. His advice would not go down well with the Garden Centre/Nursery trade.
I gave up on soi dit experts when we went round one of their gardens, it was awful.
Also when Joe whatsisface recommended Lonicera Graham Thomas for a 6 feet tall Arch , as a suitable climber. I had to go out and look at ours, climbing all over and up to the top of a 50 foot tall tree.
Love to have a Cercis, we have room for the 10 metre tall version, but they are just too tender for here.

Who else but a garden designer would have triangular beds on his allotment? (Joe whatsisface)

lol Andrew

Oh dear, hubby informed me it was 20ft by 20ft but I still think that's perfectly capable of taking more than 15 species of plants.I'll never forgive Alan Titchmarch for telling me every garden should have Achillea Mollis ....lovely as it is the seedlings have left me with lasting nightmares of the plant:-)

That's a bit less than 60 by 60, but still capable as you say of holding more than 15 species. 400 sq feet, allowing some for paths and no grass, you could fit in 150 plants with comfort. So up to you, 150 different plants or 10 of 15 species.
On the other hand it does depend on what you mean by species and what you use within a species. There an awful lot of say Asters, from tiny prostrate ones up to 12 tall giants in every colour bar yellow. So, you could fill that space with 150 plants of one species alone. The same is true of other things too, Campanula has everything from minuscule to tall.
And if you start adding trees and shrubs, then the number of herbaceous plants is reduced even further.
Grief, me sort of defending a designer!