Initial consultation

We will visit your home to discuss how you want to use your garden, eg. for entertaining friends, growing your own vegetables, to provide a play area for the children, as a wildlife haven, etc. We will also discuss your likes and dislikes with you in detail. What sorts of plants do you love (or hate) and what sort of garden will fit in with your lifestyle. Do you want it to be low maintenance or do you like pottering? Pictures from magazines or books of gardens that you like are always helpful at this stage

Site survey

This involves taking pictures and measuring your garden. We will also look at its aspect, any changes of level, soil type and the position of fences and boundaries and any features, from sheds to favourite trees, that you wish to keep. We will also carefully consider any views into the garden that need to be screened or views from the garden that can be used to best effect in the overall design.

Sketch proposal

This is where we present some ideas to you in the form of sketches showing the general layout of the garden. You may be asked to choose between various options and, with your feedback, we will be able to refine the sketches to produce an outline plan for the whole garden.

Outline plan

The outline plan is a design for the whole garden and includes the ideas that have been agreed upon. It suggests hard landscaping materials that you may wish to use and provides recommendations for elements such as sheds, statues, water features, specimen trees and border planting. The scaled outline plan will form the blueprint for your proposed garden.

Planting plans

The plants are the stars of any garden and are what bring the garden to life. We will create unique planting plans with plants that suit your tastes and the growing conditions in your garden. The plants will have been selected to look good with their neighbours and we will make sure that you have an interesting display all year round. We can provide a planting plan for a single border or for all the borders in your garden – it’s up to you. In addition to showing the position and names of all plants that we recommend, we will provide a plant schedule should you wish to source and plant them yourself.

Project management

We can advise on tried and tested landscaping contractors to build your garden or we can conduct a tender process on your behalf. We can then be involved as much or as little as you would like. From experience, many clients find it useful for us to oversee the project, co-ordinating timings and making site visits to check on progress. This ensures that the project runs smoothly and to your satisfaction.

Plant supply

We can arrange to supply all the plants specified in the planting plans. This ensures that the plants are of a good quality and we can make appropriate substitutions if some plants are unavailable.

Planting

We will prepare the borders as necessary, which may mean improving the soil before planting, and we will make sure that the plants are laid out and planted as per the planting plans.

Maintenance advice

We can provide you with a maintenance schedule with tips on how to look after your new garden to keep it looking at its best. Alternatively, we can arrange to maintain your garden on a regular basis.