Zelkova Design

Our very split level north facing garden had been an exciting challenge when we moved in over 30 years ago. After a spell working abroad we returned home to realise that we needed some professional help to tame our garden. We wanted to have a garden with year round interest that didn’t require our every waking moment to maintain. We were attracted to Zelkova by their photographs of other projects, including ones in similarly challenging terrain. Too many other designers were only interested to know the size of our paddock! An initial visit lead to the commission of a detailed site survey. Zelkova came up with three initial designs. The final design cherry picked and merged details from all three. Once we’d agreed the structure, they helped produce a plan for planting and lighting. We had the option of design only; supervision of the construction; implementation of the planting plan. I feel that Zelkova listened to what we wanted our garden to do and to the type of plants we liked. That said, they challenged me to use plants that were new to me. We decided to use them to complete the garden. Our garden is now a source of constant delight and has much extended usage. Our grandchildren loved a recent bbq in the lit evening garden. We have more colour and lower maintenance. We still enjoy it when visitors go into the garden and say “Wow!”.

I have 3/4 acre garden and adjoining 1 acre paddock which I asked Zelkova Design to transform from a rather overgrown Seventies style garden, lacking in colour and seasonal interest, and mown meadow into a more inspiring, yet still manageable, series of 'garden rooms'. The brief was also to include two informal ponds connected by a stream, exploiting the natural topology of the ground, and a possible 'swimming pond' in the paddock. The process began with lots of pictures of the initial state, a full topological survey and an exploration of the sort of garden I wished to achieve. From this three concept designs were produced for review and refinement. The treatment of the garden and paddock were dealt with separately. Next, more detailed designs were produced for review before drawing up final implementation drawings for all hard and soft landscaping and possible garden lighting. Billing for the work was phased and at each stage of completion a tangible output was delivered without commitment to future work. Zelkova were very attentive to what I wanted to achieve and expertly interpreted the brief into designs with which I was extremely pleased. Although Zelkova did arrange an introduction to their recommended Landscaper I have project managed the implementation of the designs myself. All the hard landscaping and much of the proposed planting has been done. The project was efficiently managed and cost effective.

Tom and Simon helped us design our garden from scratch. It was a challenging site, set on a slope with various shapes and levels to be accommodated. Following our brief, they proposed 3 designs. With their professional guidance we selected elements from each one to bring us to a final plan. They had lots of ideas on plants and layouts providing us with beautiful colours all year round. The garden wraps around the house, therefore meticulous detailed planting plans were proposed to support each aspect. It was a pleasure to work with them, every detail covered and all done in a very professional manner. We can highly recommend Zelkova.

Working with Simon and Tom has been an absolute pleasure from start to finish. Their infectious enthusiasm, attention to detail and professionalism were exactly what we had hoped to find when we first met them. Our project was was not the most straightforward being a slopping site with multiple buildings and a river running through it but they relished the challenge pointing out that in fact what we saw as problems would ultimately result in a much more interesting garden design. They took a meticulous brief from us finding out what types of garden imagery we liked and the whole site was topologically surveyed and converted into a cad drawing which formed the basis of an accurate design. We were then presented with 3 different designs both as 3D sketches and 2D drawings which we liked so much that we struggled to choose between them. Ultimately they blended elements of each design together to form the final design. They also integrated lighting and the final planting scheme into the design with detailed drawings to back everything up. I would happily recommend them to anyone as it is rare to find individuals with such passion for what they do backed up with detailed technical expertise for a really special end result.

What a delight it has been working with Tom & Simon of Zelkova Design, from the process of designing our back garden, to planting and delivering the final project their work has been faultless. On their first visit, they listened carefully to our ideas, wishes, likes & dislikes in plants as well as carrying out a survey of the garden which includes a mature oak tree & tall perimeter hedges. The plans were then beautifully presented & we were very happy with the imaginative designs, which included shaped flower beds in the lawn and additional trees to add interest to the garden. Tom & Simon both supplied and worked hard to plant all the plants and trees to complete the design, which has provided us with our dream garden in which there is all year round interest with evergreen and seasonal planting. We really enjoyed working with them and can highly recommend them for their professionalism and design ideas.

We asked Tom and Simon from Zelkova to produce landscaping designs for a new house we were having built. They initially provided three different options including layouts, coloured renditions and planting suggestions - each very impressive with the difficult decision as to which one to choose! Further discussions helped us to narrow it down and the one we chose was then expanded into much greater detail before we gave the go ahead for them to arrange landscaping and planting. After that we could relax because everything was meticulously project managed with the end result being an absolutely stunning garden consisting of inventive layouts and vibrant flora designed to provide interest throughout the year. Tom and Simon were exceptionally professional during the whole process and we had no hesitation in engaging them again for another project , also completed very successfully .

Zelkova Design transformed our large tired and outdated garden into a wonderful space which we can enjoy all year round. Tom & Simon are very personable and listen to your wish list and wants with regard to your garden design. The garden gives us colour for all of the growing season and also has winter interest too. We would have no hesitation in recommending Zelkova Design to transform your garden, they have been a pleasure to deal with.

Very professional, fabulous ideas, great concept drawings to help visualise, great to work with and a breadth and depth of knowledge to help achieve your dream garden. We needed a complete garden redesign, as it was old and overgrown. We met at a show, their work on display gave me confidence to book a consultation. After an inital discussion about what we liked/wanted to achieve, the designs were presented in 3 different ways, we decided to use a blend of 2 designs. The planting up was done in phases (our choice) the result is stunning! Just what we wanted, bee and wildlife friendly, with colour and interest throughout the year.