Bee's Gardens

Briony did a fantastic job of designing a garden for me - from scratch. I had a few ideas of how I wanted the garden to look and trees, shrubs and plants that I like, but only very impressionistic. Briony took these ideas, filled in the many blanks and created a garden design that has fulfilled my hopes and more. She took time to understand how I wanted to garden to 'feel' - from mood boards and draft concept through to to completed design and planting plans. Briony also worked very closely with the landscapers to bring the garden from design to reality. I'm delighted with my new garden!

Briony produced a lovely design for my "new build" garden, together with detailed planting plans. She also sourced many of the plants and accommodated a number of plants transported in pots from my previous garden. The brief was for a wildlife friendly garden that was manageable and included fruit growing opportunities. Although I am an experienced amateur with a fair knowledge of plants Briony was able to suggest others to make best use of the conditions and this exposed and windy site. I now look forward to the Spring when I can enjoy what has been created.

Briony has created a beautiful planting plan for our large border which is sunny and exposed so needed some careful thought and we have tried (and failed!) to make it look nice over the years. We loved the mood boards and the whole process of coming up with the plan. Briony takes great care to inspire you with new plants and ideas but always mindful of your likes and dislikes. We also liked her natural approach and ethos about gardening, suggesting ideas that encourage pollinators into the garden and creating an eco-friendly environment. She's also given us some brilliant hints and tips along the way. Really delighted with Briony's work and feel inspired again about our garden.

It has been a great pleasure to have the expertise of Briony Doubleday of Bee’s Gardens to design a planting plan for our garden. Although we have lived in our house for over 30 years, I always felt that it was a difficult space, partly because a large section of the garden was very overshadowed by a number of mature trees in the neighbouring gardens. Taking into account that there were already some plants we wanted to save and incorporate in the plan, Briony designed two borders for us, one a shade border, which is now planted with an attractive variety of shade-loving specimens, some of which I had never heard of. The other border, which gets much more sun and light, previously occupied to a large extent by a fruit cage (now transferred to our allotment), is now a colourful herbaceous border. Although we did all the planting ourselves, Briony came to our house on the day the plants were delivered and set them out in the appropriate spaces, at the same time giving us useful tips and advice. If you are seeking to create a habitat for wildlife and valuable pollinators, as well as an oasis where you can relax, I feel sure that you will be highly satisfied by Briony’s wealth of experience and knowledge.

After redesigning and landscaping our garden, we were looking for someone to help us develop a planting plan as we were not confident in our own ability, skills and knowledge. We were lucky enough to find Briony, who helped us through the process remotely during lockdown, we felt fulling engaged and informed throughout with regular online meetings, chats and plenty of information and guidance. We also used Briony to source the plants which were excellent quality at a very reasonable price. The garden is now fully planted up and we are thrilled with the result and are really looking forward to seeing it develop and flourish. Would not hesitate in recommending Briony.

Bee is a warm, considerate and enthusiast garden designer. She spent time with us understanding our needs and shared a selection of ‘mood boards’ to help identify our preferences. She is calm and patient a which is positive when there are lots of back and forth trying to finalise the plan. She took her time on site making sure the measurements were accurate. Bee goes above and beyond and it is clear she has a real passion for garden design, plants and wildlife. We loved our plans however made a few last minute tweaks when it came to installing the raised beds for our veggies. Being novice gardeners we didn’t want to over commit so opted for a small more manageable raised bed with a view to adding more in the future of our fingers turned particularly green.

Briony has done some beautiful work in our garden.One of the projects was to source and plant a group of planters to provide year round serenity to patients visiting my clinic.She has an exceptional ability to understand the client's requirements and you will enjoy the results of her careful, joyous planning for years to come.

My garden needs a complete redesign but I can't do it now as I'm having building work done later in the year. I needed advice about what to do with the plants that are already in the garden to save them during the building work and to have them in good places for when I can start work on it properly in about a year's time. I'm quite new to gardening and Briony was fantastic - our 90 minutes in the garden were at exactly the level I needed. I'd completed her well designed, pre-visit questionnaire which meant that we could get down to practicalities straight away. Briony was focussed on what made sense for me and was practical and supportive. She also made very helpful suggestions on the draft garden layout I had drawn. As she left I felt really enthused to get back out into the garden! Her follow-up email contained so much helpful information that I haven't yet finished reading it. It provides me with information for well into the future.

Briony steers a perfect course between listening to the client's brief and expanding on it. Plus her knowledge of plants is enviable!

For me the first thing I noticed when Briony (Bees Gardens) arrived to talk through early ideas and measure up is how quickly I was at ease. She draws out your ideas and builds them up way better. Briony knows and loves plants, so the designs have the best chance of living on. Sitting in a “Bees Garden” is lovely, she’s thought of how to get nature into a garden, of how the colours work together, and even safety, in making sure that paths are made of non slippy stone. Please look at her RHS Gold Tatton photos!

As a landscaping company we have worked closely with numerous garden designers over the last 15 years. We’ve carried out several projects for Bee’s Gardens and have always been impressed with Briony’s imaginative designs and attention to detail. If you are looking for inspiration and practical solutions to your outdoor space we would highly recommend Bee’s Gardens

Briony’s knowledge of planting and design is second to none. She has an intuitive flair for creating schemes that are both visually effective and hit the client brief. She is very personable and easy to talk to, and really cares about creating a space that goes above and beyond expectations. I wouldn’t hesitate in recommending Briony to anyone, and have already passed on her details to several friends.