Garden Design

Garden Design can be done by a professional or by the garden owner. To design your own garden you should have some design ability, either trained or innate.

When consulting a professional garden designer or landscape architect, be sure first to define your own needs and desires. Only you can know what you want and need, and these factors will change through the years.

Also, it’s a good idea to learn something about plants and gardening before choosing a landscape theme. One of the most frequent and problematical requests is “I would like a drought-resistant garden consisting of low-maintenance perennials.” I recently heard of a client phoning a landscape architect one year after a garden was installed and asking “when does the easy care begin?”

Here are some tips for designing your own garden:

1. Let the site speak for itself. Walk around your garden, notebook in hand for jotting down questions, ideas, thoughts, inspirations. Sit down here and there and visualize what you’d like to see in various areas. Think of gardens you’ve loved. Then open up your mind to realize how you can achieve a similar atmosphere. Sometimes the land itself will speak to you and almost tell you what to do. You only need to listen and observe.
2. Study pictures of beautiful gardens in magazines and books. This is a fine way to get ideas and discover your favorite garden style. It’s actually possible to adapt the best features of the greatest gardens in the world to small and intimate spaces.
3. Find good places for seating. If there are none, create them. Build arbors and pergolas to separate spaces, contribute height , add charm, and provide cosy places to sit alone or with friends.
   There is more to a garden than the ground you’re standing on. Gardens can are like rooms with a floor and carpets, walls and ceiling, even doors and windows to capture views.