Our terraced garden we moved in last year. Stone Chipping's and the odd plant and very steep steps . I'm a huge fan of garden rooms and my favourite era is arts and crafts gardens Gertrude Jekylls designs influence mine :)

For a usable space all year round a patio roof is the perfect addition to your garden. Our patio louvre roof creates an outdoor living space in your garden perfect summer BBQs and with a decked/ paved or tiled flooring the rabbit will love it. The louvre roof is automated turning the louvres flat to create a fully watertight roof (perfect for our british summers, additionally helps to protect your garden furniture from heavy rainfall. There are numerous design options which is based on your personal desires and requirements. Below are a few examples of different ways your can incorporate an Umbris patio roof. A free standing louvre roof: It can also be fixed to your property and supported with posts: Or with no posts and cantilevered out from the property: We have just had an Umbris installed at our showroom in Amersham at Sky House Design Centre, you can arrange a showroom visit by contacting us on 01494 722 882.

Hi there 81bec. I'm not sure if you've gotten started on the chances to your patch of garden, but if you haven't here are some tips, from someone who also loves low maintenance gardens that are drought proof but look gorgeous all year round..start buy getting rid of the camellia, what ever evergreen is hiding behind it and the red robin..leaving the one plant you actually seem to like, the Cordyline (good choice). Rake away all the gravel and lay down some good compost (after planting, layer over with mulch as it'll stop weeds and retain moisture, resulting in a lower maintenance garden). Next, put a piece of trellis against the side of the porch that currently has the camellia and evergreen and plant a Trachelospermum Jasminoides (Star Jasmine)-it's evergreen, a climber, low maintenance and has dark green leaves in summer with clusters of strongly fragrant white star-shaped flowers and rusty red leaves in winter, lovely. Next, plant a mix of Pennisetum Firework grass and Ox-eye daisies (sometimes called Marguerite) at the back near the wall. In the middle "row" plant a mix of Stipa Tenuissima (Mexican Feather Grass) and Echinacea (purple coneflower) and in the front, maybe either side of a wooden love seat, plant Chasmanthium Latifolium (Spangle grass). All are showstoppers year round, low maintenance, drought proof and do well in sun or semi-shade. The grasses all need the same kind of care once a year, as do the flowers, meaning you only have to do maintenance twice in a year as well as a little watering when it's really dry in exchange for year round interest and beauty that will perfectly compliment the Cordyline. Hope this was helpful. If you have any question on maintenance of any of those plants I'll be happy to help.

What a great picture, and a design that could easily be adjusted for your site, in terms of both hard landscaping and soft landscaping for a Cheshire site. The elements of slabs, wooden boards, rendered walls, low hidden water feature and lush low-maintenance planting can be achieved on a small budget. Water features surprisingly cost quite a bit, even a simple rill such as in the picture with small bubbling jets and lighting. To keep the cost down, you could look for concrete slabs, and use a softer wood and then stain it to the colour you want, rather than going for an expensive Iroko wooden board. Of course, once you start staining you will need a regular care schedule of cleaning it and re-staining it. Perhaps if the budget will allow, you could spend more on say composite decking boards and a stylish piece of furniture, and then use cheaper products elsewhere. A good Internet search will reveal some great products, but don't get carried away. Stick to your idea of how the garden should look and be strict with yourself. Failing that, appoint a garden designer. Regards Mark