New year, new garden? What will be the key trends in 2019?
Will composite decking continue to be a low-maintenance favourite along with artificial lawn? Or will you opt for more natural, enviro-friendly options such as wildflower meadows and grow-your-own veg beds?
Comments (8)
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5 years agoChristine Wilkie Garden Design thanked HMS Decorative Surfacing LimitedRelated Discussions
New Kid friendly garden help please
Comments (12)Hi. I have a couple of ideas. First, I'd rule out trying to flatten it to one level - it is very expensive, even though it doesn't look like it is a big deal to do. You'd end up with retaining walls around the sides and back and have to redo the fencing and labour costs would be big because the access isn't good (think wheelbarrows of dirt for weeks!). Second, I'd talk to the church. Say that you want to trim the holy bushes so that they are level and lower. Tell them you'll pay for that (rent a hedge trimmer for a day - less than £100) but will need access from their side too for trimming and to clean it up (because you are a nice friendly neighbour :). Then say that you are worried about the trees because you think they are getting so big they might be dangerous and they should be trimmed. I'm not suggesting they should be cut down. If they are under a Preservation Order, they are protected, but trimming is normal and healthy for a tree. I know if the tree is in the street the council has to do it and where I used to live "the Swiss church" (never got any more info than that) had a giant horse chestnut tree that they had to trim every five years because it was massive and surrounded by everyone's back gardens. I don't know about the legality of all of that but a third alternative is for everyone affected by the super large trees pitches in and pays for the trimming. There will still be leaves, but their will be less and you'll have more light back there. Anyway, on to the more interesting bit. In the spring, hire a Karcher (a high powered hose) to clean off the green from your fences and your patio area. It'll also clean out all the muck on your little retaining walls. Then I would stain all the fences the same colour - Cuprinol stains and protects the wood too. I'd keep the front as a patio for a table and scooter laps, keep the middle as lawn with narrow garden beds on either side and plant honeysuckle in a couple of corners of the pergola - it is slow growing at first but easy and very low maintenance (and doesn't drop much stuff!). A hammock is a lovely idea for under there. Let it go back to lawn so you aren't worried about falling toddlers. I'd move all your nice pots down to the patio area and group them. It is really easy to put herbs and annuals in them in the spring for colour. As nasmijati recommended, the back section could be rubber tiles or a sandpit. I can't tell if it is paved at the moment or just sodden grass.... if soggy grass, do the sandpit, if paved, put the rubber tiles over the top. You can move the little playhouse back there. Now you should have plenty of areas for the kids AND the adults. Oh, and get a couple of kids rakes for Christmas and teach them how to help their mama with the garden! I hope that helps....See MoreHelp us stop our new kitchen from going clinical!
Comments (43)I thought I'd update everyone as to what we settled on as most of you won't have seen the finished post. Went went for Little Greene French Pale Grey on the walls and then a Grey Quartz worktop which had worked quite well. To stop it from being clinical, we opted for some textured wallpaper in the dining area which is Bala Storm (I think) from John Lewis. We then added some natural tones using a wooden table, and then Vitra chairs. Along with wooden fruit bowl etc. The main window will have wooden venetian blinds, and the bay windows will probably be done in a darker grey material as the perfect fit style blinds you find in conservatories...See MoreNew kitchen redesign. What's consensus?!
Comments (52)Kerry I hope your break is lovely, kitchen design is one of the most stressful things and like you I tried to do it alone with the help of the so called kitchen designers and none offered clever ideas to bring out the best of our space. Frustrated I ended up listening to some of the advice on here and enlisted the help of Karen at OnePlan. She ended up giving us the space of our dreams with everything I wanted and suggested some fantastic solutions that we would have never had thought of. The advantage is that Karen gives you a set of comprehensive plans and a shopping list so all you have to do is email them to as many kitchen companies there are and ask for quotes. We had a huge differences for a handmade design from 33k to a more reasonable albeit built in pine 7.5k. I cannot tell you what a difference it will make to you working with a professional that is not looking to sell you cabinets but looks at your available space and listens to your needs. And you will more than save the money it costs you to employ them. I am not affiliated with Karen but I am a very happy customer, she was absolutely amazing to work with and I will forever recommend her services and already done so many times. Good luck and enjoy that beach <3...See MoreGarden Room Trends: Is black the new white?
Comments (5)Hello Westbury garden rooms, 2 and 3 are particularly nice and on the windows of the house too would be spectacular. I also like black and shades on a theme... Such as deep grey, charcoal and greens.. All dependant on the period of the property and the surrounding features.. :))...See More- PRO
Christine Wilkie Garden Design
5 years ago 
Fiona Brown
5 years agoWhat advice for a garden where kids live to kick a ball around, 8*10m. Don't need dining space as have additional decking.
Christine Wilkie Garden Design thanked Fiona Brown
minipie
5 years ago- PRO
Christine Wilkie Garden Design
5 years agoHi Fiona - Thanks for attaching a pic of your garden. You could consider dividing the lower garden area into two zones with the first half given over to soft landscaping with plants that will give colour, fragrance and interest when viewed from your upper deck. You could then install some kind of screening (either a low hedge or slatted fence panels) and make the second area into a dedicated kid's play zone. I know not everyone's a fan of artificial lawn, but in a small garden it really does have its benefits as a low-maintenance, soft surface for play. The attached image is from a basement garden we created measuring just 5m x 3m and features a climbing wall, seat/storage bench and articificial lawn for play and lounging.
Small Basement Garden, Camden · More Info 
PROEliza Gray Gardens
5 years agoI feel that the different styles and trends in the garden for 2019 will still have to cover the basic functional requirements that people have for their gardens: Entertaining space, privacy, area for bins, washing line etc, but we will be looking at slicker ways of doing this.
While there will always be a demand for a soft, cottage garden, I am seeing more demand for tonally restricted planting scheme, sitting alongside visually gentle hard landscaping choices such as natural stone, cortex steel and gravel. Think of one of my favourite designers, Tom Stuart-Smith, combining natural soft planting with clean modern hard landscaping.
Having said that , the most popular garden at Chelsea last year was Mark Gregory's Yorkshire garden - which was as cottage garden as you can get - so what do I know!
Sonia