Garden design, garden planning, garden layout, planting plants and planting schemes

A new family garden with design, interest and uses

Posted on December 24th, 2009

Once the site had been cleared, worked commenced on grading the site and to create a series of terraces with the highest at the back (upper lawn) and grading downwards towards front (a planted buffer zone separating lawn area from football area) which was also separate from the enclosed vegetable garden which was next up from the entrance level and garden shed.

Some other works completed included the construction of an enclosure for the puppy as well as some wall cladding/trellissing to conceal some unappealling unrendered blockwork wall finishes etc.

Entrance to Dog Enclosure

Planting at Dog enclosure featured Hardenbegia and Libertia.

View of entrance (southern) to enclosed Vegetable garden area

Enclosed Vegetable garden Entrance/exit (northern)

Stepping stone pathway linking Vegetable garden to Garden Shed

View towards Boundary of prepared ground of Vegetable garden

View towards House of well prepared ground of Vegetable garden

A rendered and secure garden shed

View of football play area

View of upper lawn area

Sandstone setts were used to delineate lawn profile

View of Ornamental Grasses/Herbaceous planting area

Feature planting included Tree Ferns and slow but low growing Bamboos

Old granite wall provides an excellent backdrop to planting scheme

The gentle sweep of lawn edge/planted areas provides added interesting

Sweeping lawn edges create variable planted space possibilities

The original Post & Panel fencing was painted green to make it less conspicuous

Practical and robust planting (Pittosporum Tom Thumb and Libertia) at rear of football area

Roll turf provides an ideal and instant finish look to a new lawn

Timber cladding with trellissing provides a coherent but attractive finish

New Garden Planting: the success factors

Posted on November 17th, 2009

Garden design must take into consideration many elements, but for most people, the key ones would be structure, layout, maintenance requirements, colour and of course planting.

Creating different compartments, interesting views, distinctive focal points and gently sweeping lines and contours are all key aspects of making a garden.  

Maples – delightful forms with stunning colours

Posted on October 15th, 2009

Well most of us will be familiar with some or several Acers (Japanese Maples) but here are some interesting varieties which will special appeal to many gardeners especially if you are on the look-out for small trees. These varieties are quite simply amazing, with striking colourful displays they can be planted in the ground or alternatively in large patio containers.

As a general rule, Maples/Acers are a little vunerable, they do require some protection from strong winds but otherwise are very content if planted in a sheltered spot ie sun/half shade. These varieties are also deciduous, and as Acers do not like pruning, select a spot which allows plant to comfortably reach normal height and spread.  Apart from some basic ground preparation, mix in some compost and fertiliser with planting soil and water regularly until the plant becomes established, they are otherwise trouble free.

Here are 3 great varieties with all the magic of Maples:

Sandstone Setts – the design features

Posted on October 6th, 2009

Natural Sandsone Setts are an appealing and versatile element for inclusion in any garden design project. Available in a range (light, medium and indeed dark tones) of colours and sizes, they are ideal as a practical lawn edge, permanently defining the lawn profile, a robust barrier/buffer between lawn making them an ideal mowing strip (Tip: the sett level should be 25 mm/1″ below lawn level and also no need for a strimmer!).  Setts can also be used very effectively to separate lawn from planted or indeed pebbled areas, make an attractive trim to pathways as well as Patios.

Installing setts as a lawn edge is relatively straight forward, first excavate channel, place hardcore in end of channel, and carefully position setts in a sand cement bed (typically 75mm/3″ deep), ensuring that the setts are straight (linear layout) or concentric (use builders line to check each sett) if design is a radial. Each sett should be embedded securely or well haunched, and each sett should be checked with spirit level. A few photos from our current project will help to illustrate these points: 

Excavate channel

Put hardcore (foundation) in base of excavated channel

Lining up setts alongside prepared channel makes for speedy installation

Sand & cement is used to secure Sandstone Setts in situ

Utilising Sandstone Setts to profile Patio and lawn edge

Sandstone Setts make an attractive finish to Patio edge

Hard Garden Landscaping

Posted on September 30th, 2009

Some more photos to show progress on our Hard Landscaping works, ie, constructing Raised Sandstone Walls, Sandstone (Ravena) Garden Patios and link Sandstone Pathways. Some photos also show preliminary ground preparation including Hardcore Foundations (Sub-base)  for paved areas and also one (Vegetable garden area) of the several new  water taps installed throughout the garden.

Later this week we will commence marking out the garden for installation of lawn edging (Sandstone Sett) which will permanently define the lawn profile and separate it clearly from perimeter planted areas. As the hard landscaping works progresses, work will shortly commence on the installation of garden lighting ahead of the soft landscaping elements which include tree and shrub planting, ground grading and preparation for installation of roll turf lawn.

Building a new Garden

Posted on September 25th, 2009

The current fine weather is an ideal time to achieve good progress with site works, and this is evident with a number of project aspects, ie, fencing including painting is now completed and the ground is being slowly cleared of any residual debris from earlier excavations and trenching.  

Meanwhile the Retaining Sandstone wall for the Raised Vegetable garden area is progressing well and begining to take shape, whilst the main patio area which will be extend over a number of levels and featuring Indian Sandstone (Ravena) is begining to evolve and to take shape.

Landscape Gardening

Posted on September 23rd, 2009

As the photos will hopefully illustrate, the garden fencing is all but completed and the fence painting is advancing very well, helped in no small way by the kind weather.

Meanwhile we also commenced excavating for the patio and pathway areas as well trenching for the new water main supply (black pipe- heavy duty hydrodare) to the house. Once pipe has been secured in position two additional supplies (one to Vegetable Garden area and one also to Front Garden) will also be installed.  

The commencement of paving (natural stone) works will represent a significant step and as the project progresses from this point, significant visual clues will become apparent and glimpses of the new garden layout will begin to emerge.

Garden Fencing – bounded by definition

Posted on September 16th, 2009

Installation of the Garden Fencing is at an advanced stage and work on final side is now well underway whilst painting of other sides has commenced. Although it was possible to retain a uniform level on each of two sides, we had to introduce some stepping of levels of the final side largely influenced by the level changes on a neighbouring fence. The stepping is very discreet and is only noticeable in a limited area. By the time planting is completed and after some maturing of the plants, I would be confident that the stepping will be virtually unnoticeable.

The painting and the colour choice adds some drama to the new fencing and at this early stage of the project, the prospects of a ‘new’ garden is begining to emerge.

Garden Fencing Tips

Posted on September 10th, 2009

Well work is proceeding with the installation of the perimeter fencing and here is a short guide with some tips and photos to getting it right first time: 

1. set the alignment along the horizontal
2. calculate the spacings between posts, ie center to centre (in this instance 1.5m, but this will depend on fencing style etc and can range from 1.2m-1.8m)
3. mark ground for post pits and excavate. In this instance because of the height dimensions (2.0m – 2.5m) the posts are quite substantial 3600 x 150×75mm and the pits are a minimum of 1000mm deep and 400×400mm
4. posts are set in concrete and secured in situ for at least 48 hours before screw fixing of boards can commence (any earlier attempts to fix boards could undermine the stability of the concrete post footings, which may crack or worse if post is not 100% secure could become weak and undermine the overall stability of the completed fence)
5. plan all works well in advance and avoid any attempts to take shortcuts and the results will be a secure, pleasing and long lasting garden fencing that will play a key role within the overall garden layout and enhance the garden design.

Garden Fencing – custom built

Posted on September 5th, 2009

Well a short reprieve from recent wet spells allowed us to commence a new phase (Stage 4), i.e.,  the installation of the Garden Fencing. After several weeks of Site clearance and initial Groundworks, which was often dogged by and made much more challenging by prolonged periods of rain, it was a welcomed development to experience firsthand what is perhaps the early signs of the emerging new landscaping plan. Sometimes garden fencing is overlooked, which is a pity really, but understandable because how often do we see poorly installed garden fencing? More often it is considered an eyesore and great efforts are made to conceal unwanted sights in a garden.

However if designed and installed with care and attention to the overall garden scheme, garden fencing fulfills very important roles in a garden, first and foremost, it must secure and clearly define the site boundaries. Perhaps an important but frequently overlooked role is the important contribution which garden fencing can offer to the overall garden aesthetics. Garden fencing has an instant impact on layout and site security.

In my opinion when it come sto Garden Fencing, the premium choice is a custom built solution, in which the functional and aesthetic requirements can be addressed from the outset of the project. Perhaps one if not the best solution is  Timber cladding or Shiplap Board (sometimes referred to as ‘Weathersheet boarding’), not only because of its hardwearing, long lasting and hugely impressive qualities as a finish, but its clean defined lines offer a very impressive and discreet backdrop to compliment the planting and overall site aesthetics.

In our current project the emergence of the new fencing was an exciting moment as one might imagine from the photos. Later in the project we will return to Garden fencing when we can demonstrate how colour can also be used to great effect to further enhance the impressive qualities of custom built garden fencing, making it an ideal solution to meet security as well aesthetic requirements.