Design suggestions for our small garden

3 years ago

Hi all, we have recently renovated our house with a new extension. The garden needs a huge amount of work but we don’t know what to do with it.

We feel we went too short on the decking - how do others feel?

We also don’t know what to do with the rest of the garden? Should we dig down so the garden is level? Should we put in beds? Or just turf?

To begin with we need to clear the sumac and other small shrubs.

Any ideas very much appreciated

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Comments (5)

Ellie
3 years ago
It's hard to see where your garden ends (that's a good thing!) so not sure of your deck is small. It's only too small if you can't fit on it what you want eg a chair? 2 chairs? dining table?....

Don't jump too quickly to rip all the plants out.... plants are really expensive even more do to buy large plants. If unsure of what to take out, what to keep then take some close ups and post on here for advice, particularly the large shrubs
Mary Mary
3 years ago
This is our old house, we had a similar extension and a long narrow garden. We created diff zones with diff planting schemes. Take your time and it will evolve good luck.
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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
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I need to resurrect this thread! So 2 years on we've completed all of the downstairs internal work, and knocked down the garage. We spread some grass seed, and there is now a garden space where once sat the garage. We did have a builder booked in for rebuilding the garage to the side of the house, and planned to add some decking where the patio doors are along the back of the house!/wall maybe, but now the builder has cancelled and is returning our cash, we're therefore reallocating funds to a much needed upstairs bathroom instead. I wonder if there are any budget friendly suggestions and ideas to make an area that will hold gardening tools/provide cover for my partner to do his hobbies by the side of the house? It's a wall then huge hedge beyond that which is directly parallel with a footpath and road on the other side. I thought about a shed but would the hedge not be impossible to cut and would it rot quicker, plus would the roots die off? We need to keep the hedge or have some privacy from the road, but equally need a place to store and use the space at the side. Thoughts?
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I think just covering all that fencing with climbers will make a huge difference, and a small tree will add height and interest. Smallish trees with lovely blossom are Sorbus (Mountain Ash), Hawthorn, Magnolia or even a dwarf apple tree - I have Spartan which has lovely pink blossom in spring followed by delicious red fruits. Climbers that like sun are Roses, Honeysuckle and Clematis. Climbing Hydrangea is a climber that enjoys shade so good for your shady spot. I’m not a fan of plastic grass, but I know what a mess dogs can make of a small lawn! You could just create another paved area, but in a different stone such as gravel or granite sets. Have a long on Pinterest where there are lots of ideas of “courtyard gardens” where there are no lawns but still full of lush planting. Shrubs would probably get too big, but there are little shrubs such as Skimmia, Hebe, Lavender etc that you can fill in the gaps. Here’s some ideas
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H A
3 years ago
Presume the toy car means little person/people around? If so, perhaps for now clear it bit by bit; leave an area ‘wild’ for exploring; keep tough shrubs that will withstand footballs; grass an area for swings/slide/wooden play structure. Enjoy a few years with young family and then make it yours when they are teenagers stuck in their bedroom all day!! 😊
Sonia
3 years ago
It’s hard to see the scale of the garden but you have some nice shrubs. Why not clear the middle area and level it if that’s possible. Rake it finely then turf it. It will give you a useable space until you decide how you want to do. The shrubs may not seem so overwhelming if you have a tidy lawn? My sister is in your position and she got help on here with a plan and is getting quotes for the landscaping as we speak!
PRO
The Rooted Concept Garden Designs
3 years ago
Hi Rowena,

As others have said, it is hard to judge by the pictures whether the decking is too small, and the best way of telling is indeed to see if you can fit everything that you wanted to comfortably in there (maybe a set of table and chairs?).

It is also hard to see where your garden ends, and therefore, judge its dimensions from the pictures, as it seems a bit overgrow. Lawn space will be useful as children's playing area, but I would also add in some planting to give your garden some structure (some tough planting to put up with ball games in the future possibly), and depending on how big it is, other seating areas could be added as well.

If you need any further help, I do online garden design and consultancies and have some very affordable options that could give you a personalised idea of how best to layout your garden. Please do let me know if you are interested.

Deborah

The Rooted Concept Garden Designs by Deborah Biasoli

deborahbiasoli@gmail.com

Design suggestions for our small garden

Comments (5)

Ellie

Mary Mary

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