We have just bought a house, and the garden delivered will be a simple affair. We would like a little project and hence the question..

We have a list of things we’d like in: small veg garden, patio area (supplied with the build) some grass but not too much and some border areas.

But how do we go about putting it all together so it works? Need to get a landscaper in?

Any advice?

Can anyone show me their garden for reference? thanks a lot in advance.

you can do a garden design course where you leave with a design for your garden. You can then implement yourself or get someone in and u will have gained a nice skill and had the time to think through your design.
mail me if you cant find anything on google

All done ‘in-house’ except for the fencing. It was all grass when we moved in except for the ‘industrial’ paved area at the bottom of the photo. Patio and gravel areas were done first (patio was a bit of a bodge job and needs re-laying if I’m honest). Beds and raised veg area at the end were done Easter this year.

And yes, we know bits of it need ‘tending to’.

slainte 😳 rob

nice one thanks for all the replies! ps im in switzerland so the courses i’ll have a look for but im not sure i’ll find one. i’ll see. cheers!

Plant a tree

kayak23 wins!

Switzerland you say, why does something like this spring to mind 😉

kayak23 wins!

I have to confess it’s not my garden. Just close to my idea of a dream design… 🙂

no professional.

But what do you want the garden to do? Is there anything you need to hide? How much time do you have?

Other things to consider what sort of soil have you got, there is no point trying to grow azalias if you have alkaline soil. What aspect is the garden, south facing/north facing? even what are the walls/fences made of.

Do you have any height difference across the garden, manhole covers, sheds, greenhouses, etc, etc. If you want to do the Veg thing, cold frames help if you don’t want a greenhouse.

Straight lines tend to boring so avoid if at all possible.

Ex garden designer here.

You’ve made a good start by maing a list of what you want from the garden – that’s the easy bit. Have you done a survey of the garden yet? You can’t really draw up a design unless you know how what shape it is & which way it points. A basic technique once you’ve done the survey is then to do a simple ‘audit’ of your garden – make a note of any good/bad views, where the sun is in the morning/afternoon, and dry/boggy bits etc.

You can then go on to start putting a plan together. The problem most people run into is that they start by thinking about features/plants rather than making the space (argh – designer word!) work. If you think about designing a house then you’d start thinking about the arrangement of rooms & how they link together,rather than getting a blank piece of paper and saying ‘i want a sofa here and the dining room table over there’. So that’s what you need to do with the garden. Work with the functional space (argh – 2 designer words!), then planting will fill the stuff that’s left over. If you check John Brookes’ books you’ll find his ‘grid system’ which is a decent way to ensure things stay related to each other.

Straight lines tend to boring so avoid if at all possible.

Nope, straight lines have their place in the garden – Titchmarsh style wobbly hosepipe borders can look a right mess, and (IMHO) the smaller the garden the less space there is for curves.

Level changes can really work too – even going up or down a single step can make the garden feel like two different areas.

Loads more, but as a beginner I’d suggest having a nose through some of Brookes’ stuff and see where that takes you.

As for getting a landscaper in… well, back to the house analogy. There are some jobs where you know what you want and you’d just call a builder, there are some where you need a bit of input and you’d get a design/build type person involved who would at least do some drawings, and for a full house build you’d probably go to an architect (or building designer). Same deal with gardens.

Above all, have fun with it.

Before

Just started

Nearly finished

All done!

HolmwoodDave I like the fencing you created ^ – what did you use it looks like oak beams but not so square?

HolmwoodDave I like the fencing you created ^ – what did you use it looks like oak beams but not so square?

They are new sleepers….. a lot of clay to hold back and they are concreted into the ground!