Welcome to our DIY Heather Garden Design

If you want to try out a design before buying your plants, follow the instructions below.

Be patient, the applets may take some time to load.

We stress that these applets are still at the experimental stage. All comments, bug reports etc. to Ian Small, ian.small@mac.com

These applets require a browser capable of handling Java 1.1 classes; roughly that means Netscape 4 or later, Internet Explorer 4 or later.

Instructions on searching the Handy Guide

Click on a button, depending on the search criteria you wish to use.
In the list dialog which appears, click on the value(s) you would like to use in your search. Multiple values can be selected by holding down the SHIFT key whilst clicking.
Click on the Search button or press Return to start the search.
To see information on a particular cultivar, just double-click on its name in the list.

The fastest way to find a particular cultivar you've heard about is to use the "Cultivar Name" button. In the ensuing dialog, type the beginning of the cultivar name you are looking for. The search ignores case, whitespace and punctuation, i.e. "cwnix" will find "C. W. Nix". There is no need to type the full name, and the applet will find all the possible matches if the query is ambiguous; try typing "gold" or even "g" !
Each search is run on the currently available set of cultivars; therefore searching for "Species" = "Calluna vulgaris", "Flower Type" = "double" and "Flower Colour" = "White" in succession will give the 17 double white Calluna cultivars in the database.
Use the "Undo Search" button to restore the previous list of cultivars.
Use the "All cvs" button to restore the complete list of cultivars.
For a search by flowering period, select the months during which you would like the cultivar(s) to be in flower. If several months are selected, all cultivars which flower during one or more of the selected months will be found.

Having selected the cultivar you want to grow, plant it in the garden by clicking the point where you wish to plant it. (The garden must be in 2D mode to be able to plant heathers in it) Repeat for more plants of the same cultivar or choose a new one.
Should you want to move a plant, once planted, just click and drag. You can delete a plant by selecting it and then using the delete key on your keyboard. You can move/delete a group en bloc by selecting plants and holding the shift key down at the same time.
You can look at your design in 3D, view it from any angle and at any time of year, by selecting the appropriate choices in the popup menus below the garden.
If you want to keep a record of your best designs, we would suggest you take a screen shot. (PC: ALT + PRINT SCREEN; MAC: SHIFT + COMMAND + 3 or 4)