Designing small outdoor spaces

Gardens naturally come in all shapes and sizes yet designing a smaller outdoor space can sometimes pose a challenge. The same elements usually still need to be included from a clients’ wish-list, maybe seating, a dining area, possibly a water feature or sculpture and a seasonal planting scheme. It is about being clever with the area, looking at it as a whole and how it is viewed from inside the house. With small gardens, everything is on show and there can be no room for error or wasted space.

Space saving ideas

There are many ways in which cleverly considered elements work, not only by serving a dual purpose but in offering space saving ideas. A bench can offer a neat storage solution inside. A swing can offer fun for your kids, but also an extra seat for informal gatherings. Raised borders also can give additional seating for guests, add cushions to encourage people to sit there. Carefully considered flower borders can be planted with veg, fruit and herbs also for culinary requirements.

Seating areas with small benches take us less space than dining chairs. Go vertical with planting, display small pots on a ladder or shelving frame. Steal views from your boundaries, to add an extra perspective and give a sense of extra space. Staining boundary fences a dark colour will also encourage this as well as really making the plants stand out. 

We will always off course, consider every inch of your garden. Whatever its size choice of materials and layout is so important. Even in a small town garden, such as mine, I have managed to include three areas to sit to enjoy the sun through the day. The one most used is the west facing corner of the garden. After work, being sheltered and private, it provides a snug oasis to enjoy the last of the sun. 

Privacy and screening is usually top of the priority list. Smaller gardens tend to be positioned in a higher populated area with neighbours in close proximity. You want to feel private without being hemmed in.. carefully positioned trees, attractive trellising, laser cut panels and pleached trees can all achieve this.

A stunning garden can be created from the tiniest of spaces, it is just about being clever with the design.

Please do check out some more inspirational ideas on my Pinterest page: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/lizziejsmith/tiny-garden-spaces/

Wonderful Winter Pots and Festive Garden Ideas

It’s not too late to think about some wonderful winter pots for your garden and not too early to think about some festive garden ideas!

Whether you have a balcony, courtyard or large terrace, creative planting really can bring an interesting element to the cold, winter garden. Avoid the pansies and be bold. Evergreen grasses, perennials, ferns and small shrubs can provide great pleasure. Pop in some fresh compost and mix in a little grit to aid drainage through the wetter months. Layer in some bulbs first if you wish. 

Placing your Pots

Decide where you will be placing the pots before you fill them, to save your back. Grouping them can look stunning. Place them near the house so you can enjoy them as much as possible. If you have garden lighting, position the pots so they will be illuminated in the dark. 

I have layered mine in height, by placing smaller ones on upturned wooden crates and a small bistro table. This gives a fabulous effect of differing heights. If you have outdoor lanterns or ornaments that are not being stored over the winter, dot them in with your pots so you create a dynamic display.

As we near the festive season, collect fir cones and put them around the plants to cover any exposed soil or fill the empty lanterns with them to the brim. Simple outdoor strings of lights would also look lovely adorned across the plants weaved through them to add another dimension. 

Small, twiggy branches that have blown down can be grouped into a metal watering can or tall bucket and small baubles hung from them. It’s all about being creative and using what you already have in the garden. By gathering all your treasures together, you really can create a wonderful display. 

See ideas on my Pinterest page: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/lizziejsmith/winter-pots/

The Benefits of Gardening

Much has been written about the benefits of gardening. For me, one of these benefits is actually writing about it! Starting a regular blog piece has meant that I am able to express my passion of the subject in words. Apart from endless emails and the odd birthday card, we don’t write. Ok, so I am using a laptop right now, not ink on paper but the process of creating a paragraph or two with interesting content (I hope) I find very therapeutic. Off-loading your thoughts and clearing your mind a little must be therapy? As a teenager, we all kept a diary of our thoughts and it is often suggested that now that would still be a good idea but it is of course, down to the old problem of time. 

Physical & Mental Welfare

Gardening will always give us strength and pain (our backs!) but the physical and mental welfare such a simple pleasure gives is truly astonishing. As I celebrate soon my business realising one decade, I reflect on what it has done for me personally. To be in a garden and having a successful garden design business really is a perfect combination for me, combining people, plants and creativity rolled into one. 

Hands in the soil will always be the most simple of pleasures, in a whirlwind world of tech, this will never change. They say tech may go full circle and implode. Whilst our fingers may not be tapping on a keyboard, they will always be pushing bulbs into soil, snipping dead blooms and touching that beautiful, tactile, soft leaf. The physical benefits of gardening are clear, tried and tested. The exercise through walking and stretching in the garden, outweigh the aching limbs and sore back. Regular gardeners certainly don’t need a gym membership,  gardening is a good workout in itself. It gives you thinking time and head space. All rather decadent things to behold. 

Really visualising the changing seasons with regular outdoor eyes, makes you appreciate all that surrounds us. The silence can be deafening, an unusual occurrence, but one so wonderful. Gardening isn’t just about fresh air, its about fresh thoughts, fresh ideas and fresh outlooks.

Gertrude Jekyll – Influential Garden Designer

A Life Long Legacy

Gertrude Jekyll left a life long legacy to all us keen gardeners, whether embarking on gardening as a hobby or a career we have so much to be thankful to this astonishing woman. 

Born on November 29th 1843 in Mayfair, Jekyll (pronounced “Jeekell”) attended Henry Cole’s School of Art. A natural creative, she worked in Paris and then at The British Museum, The National Gallery, The Louvre and The Brera. The galleries of Venice and Rome then offered her not only invaluable opportunity but wonderful experience also. She never married and had no children.

She began concentrating her talents on gardening. When aged 46, she met the young, aspiring architect, Edward Lutyens who was himself only 20. They developed a deep respect for each others work, working alongside each other closely. A profound lifelong friendship ensued. They became the most influential and historical partnership in The Arts and Crafts movement.

Jekyll spent most of her life in Surrey, latterly at Munstead Wood, near Godalming. She ran a garden centre there and bred many new plants.

Jekyll’s work is known for its’ radiant colour and brush-like strokes of planting. Some suggest that the impressionistic style schemes may have been due to her deteriorating eyesight.

Jekyll’s influence on garden design has been hugely pervasive to this day and we are thankful for all her work that is still referred to by many garden designers. 

Bulbs, that time again… let’s make plans….

Bulbs, so we’ve reached that time of year again as our seasons now change. The garden starts to dissolve into various shades of brown or, dare I say it, yellow… as we move gently from summer to autumn. We are all busy, but it’s that time of year again, let’s make plans. Planning ahead is always a priority in the garden and with our vast experience, we can help you to achieve this. 

Bulb Planting

Whether your garden is already full of spring bulbs, there is always room for more bulb planting, therefore we always encourage clients to take pictures of their garden. We like to return to completed projects but through the seasons, clients’ images also helps us to understand where there may be pockets of the garden still to fill. October is a great month to plant spring bulbs while November is preferable for tulips. These can be packed into planters in layers (think lasagna) for maximum effect. Again, we can recommend varieties that will compliment each other not only in colour but height and flowering period. Delicious varieties such as Tulipa “Brown Sugar” and “Paul Scherer” will sing next to Tulipa “Madonna”. Deep raspberry tones of hyacinth “Woodstock” will become firm friends with the smaller Muscari. Whilst later appearances will be made by outstanding alliums. We favour white varieties such as the impressive “Mont Blanc” and “White Cloud”. These really look impressive not only in stature but are a cool, silhouette against a dark backdrop or amongst shorter neighbours. 

These important additions to the garden form our first glimpses of life after a possible long, hard winter. However, wrap up and enjoy your garden too through the colder months. There is nothing more invigorating than taking a steaming hot coffee and finding a sheltered, sunny spot in the winter sunshine. 

Cutting back your garden, autumn axe or spring shear?

What’s the best approach for cutting back your garden? Seasonal interest is always top of our clients’ requirements in regard to the planting, once the garden has been built. We work closely with our clients to ensure a detailed brief is set. This is agreed with visual boards, sketches and plant lists, all alongside clear planting plans and schedules. Evergreens, hedges and trees always provide the “bones” of the garden. But what about the smaller plants? The lovely flowery perennials and grasses? When collating the planting scheme, we consider how these will look through the winter. Seedheads, hips and strong, structural forms of these smaller plants maintain such beauty and interest through the colder months.

Autumn vs Spring tidy

“Putting the garden to bed” used to be en vogue, chopping everything down neatly in autumn and applying a good blanket of mulch. Mulch still of course is a good idea to keep everything snug. Protecting the more delicates such as dahlia tubers and agapanthus for example, however we believe leaving anything that will look interesting until the spring. Obviously some plants disappear naturally through their regeneration process. You certainly wouldn’t want to leave the “slimey” characters (agapanthus spring to mind again), but there are so many that will provide you with a stunning skeletal quality. The harsh frosts of a cold winter lick these remnants with their icy tongue to leave behind such beauty. If you don’t suffer from OCD and can cope with a little untidiness, leave all alone until the spring. Slight dishevelled appearance of the winter garden will reward you measurably with stunning organic shapes. The stunning interest will continue through the season until new growth appears. Be sure to enjoy the crisp colder months that the winter days bring even if it maybe from the warmth of inside.

Accessorising your garden

As a nation, we love to accessorise our homes and accessorising your garden should be no exception. We find once the new garden has been built from our design plans, the plants go in and completely transform the whole space. The inevitable noise, mess and disruption of the build is over. Finally some soft, gentle green and colour is added to give height, structure, movement but also layers. I always compare a garden creation to painting. The layers need to be built up. You have the outline, the black and white, the stark, harsh materials but the plants make the whole picture sing. These verdant, living creatures are without a heartbeat but are included in your garden to make you miss one now and again. 

Add some simple accessories. Strategically placed sculpture as a focal point will help you find a place in the garden that may otherwise be lost. A series of pots will allow extra planting in maybe an area that is a bit lacking in “green”. They will break up a large expanse of terrace or illuminate a dark corner. We can help you choose and suggest suitable ones. Lanterns and simple tea lights add gentle warmth and a sense of place. Be bold and “dress” your dining or seating area. Add large cushions, choose fabrics that don’t match but that will compliment each other in their colour scheme. Select some cosy throws so you can wrap up and continue to enjoy the garden despite the evenings getting a little cooler as they are now. 

Gardens are so important to us, make sure you can enjoy every last minute out there…. Oh and leave your phone inside…. 

Glamorous pickings, cut, cut and flower again

After time and effort spent in your garden, it is such a delight to bring your blooms into the house. Nothing can be more true than the glamorous pickings of blousy dahlias. After the last frosts have passed, planting dried up looking, brown dahlia tubers in May, it is hard to believe that anything so delicious can grow from such an ugly looking, knarled form. This is when gardening really comes into it’s own, when the first signs of green shoots pop up through the soil’s surface. This small wonder brings such excitement knowing that there is rich life and wonderful flowers ahead.

Yes they need some encouragement, I feed mine once a week with a liquid Seaweed or Tomato feed and they are thirsty so need regular watering. The central tips should be pinched out to encourage stronger flowers. This filled me with dread the first time I performed such a brutal act, it seemed so wrong to remove the tops when they looked so healthy. But be brave, the confidence of doing this will pay you dividends!

Dahlia care

Stake early to keep everything upright and supported, the blooms can be heavy so keep an eye to tie the stems in as they get taller. I use pea sticks and garden twine which is perfect. As the plants start to flower, keep picking to encourage more, the joy of taking them into the house is so rewarding and they make a lovely gift to take to friends. Add some other “bits” from the garden to make a really pretty display. I sometimes float the blooms in a shallow bowl or use a few small vases each filled with dahlias for maximum effect.

Dalia’s will keep flourishing until the first frosts. Then the big question…. once you’ve cut them down… should they stay or should they go? I leave mine in situ with a deep mulch blanket over the top for the cold months ahead, I don’t have the time or space to be digging them up and tuber-sitting over the winter and this seems to work in the South of England. A good tip is to pop a plant label in by each one so you can remember the exact location of where they are next year. It’s easy to get excited in the spring thinking you have an empty space for new plants only to find that space is already home to a dahlia!

Be bold, be brave with your colour combinations and revel in the beauty that will behold.