Although many people neglect it, we think that the garden is just as important as the house.
A beautifully designed interior means nothing if the outside looks like a scene from Jumanji.
As the warmer months approach, more time will be spent in our gardens, so it is important we get them up to scratch. If you want a designer garden, to match your designer home, then follow our nice and easy step by step guide.
Step 1: Make a plan
Do not even consider getting the trowel out until you have put together a plan for your new garden. Too many people rush headfirst into buying new plants and furniture, without considering how it is all going to look first. You can put a basic plan together yourself or use a professional to put a visualisation together for you. Only when you have something down on paper will you be able to start creating that designer garden.
Step 2: DIY or Professional Services
The next thing to decide is whether you want to do it all yourself or hire the help of a professional. There will be limitations to a DIY gardening job that you wouldn’t necessarily get if you hired an expert to give you a helping hand. As an example, living environs landscape architecture experts could help with the planning, landscaping and construction of features, swimming pools and even garden buildings. Doing it yourself is fine, as long as you’re not planning on an exceptionally large project. When your plan is ready, and you have decided whether to do it yourself or hire someone in, you can finally move onto step three.
Step 3: Out with the old
In most cases, creating a designer garden means getting rid of the jungle you have outside already. Depending on the type of work that is going to be carried out you may just need to pull some weeds and mow the lawn. Bigger projects are likely to require a completely blank canvas, which means digging everything up. If you are going to be starting from scratch make sure you find a suitable place for the old garden bits to go. It may be that the council will provide a skip or that you can donate them to a local gardening project.
Step 4: Hit the shops
Finally, it’s time to go shopping! Using your plan and a predetermined budget, head over to various gardening centres, furniture stores and even boot fairs to pick up the bits you need. Plants, furniture and accessories are not always the cheapest, so it may be best to shop around before you decide on everything you want. Try scrap yards for things such as wood (used to make decking) and boot fairs for cheap plants. You should now have everything you need to complete your designer garden.
Step 5: The finishing touches
It is no good trying to recreate a designer garden, without any designer pieces. Set aside a fraction of your budget for something that is truly unique and eye catching, to put in your garden. It could be an ornament, a fountain, a sculpture or some fancy solar lights. Whatever you decide, it has to be true to your style and exciting enough to become a talking point.
Your step by step guide is complete and now all you have to do is start on that plan. It won’t be long before your garden design skills are being coveted by the next door neighbours.