Part 1 - A London garden walkthrough

A London Garden Walkthrough - Parts 1 & 2

With the London garden as an example, we'll cover a range of practical considerations in this lesson, including choosing materials, arranging pots and borders, choosing the right plants for the right place, and how your garden will change over time.

This is a small garden in a city, divided into four areas:

• terrace outside the kitchen
• planting area filled with flowers
• seating area
• dining and cooking area.

This suits a large family as there are lots of different areas to be. Staggered hedging down the length of the garden means you might not be able to see each other.

• Dividing a garden up creates a sense of space and means you're not aware of the other areas. This gives adventure and surprise as you catch glimpses.

The First Seating Area

• This is close to the kitchen so it's easy to eat out here.
• There are flowers in pots and on the table.
• We've made use of the boundaries by growing climbers – roses and clematis – against the walls and fences. This gives seclusion and a sense of the country in the town.

Material Choices

Materials were chosen to match those in the house:

• the paving closely matches the kitchen floor
• the brick walls were already here, but again would have been chosen to match had we created them
• the simple timber trellis is just enough to carry the plants without being obtrusive
• the steel pergolas spanning the garden are covered with climbing plants and match the bi-fold doors of the kitchen.

A Simple Palette of Shapes and Materials

• I used the outline of the bi-fold doors to create the pergola frames. This keeps things easy on the eye and prevents introducing another element to the garden.
• Not having too many different elements is key in a small garden.
• It's also key to keep the palette of materials simple – no more than three in one area.

A Plant Lover's Paradise

The next section is a flower-filled area with beds, roses on the boundaries, and a gravel path through. A neighbouring tree means I've planted for shade.

• Your planting may need to be tweaked a little as trees grow and the space develops.

Adapt as the Garden Grows and Develops

When the garden was created it was lighter and there were more sun-loving plants. As it's become shadier, we've introduced shade lovers such as hostas and martagon lily.

• Ferns, Thalictrum and Brunnera are also excellent for a shady garden.

Planting is never finished – plants grow, situations change – so always be prepared to adjust to make your garden just right.

A Garden with All Conditions

Sometimes plants might not do exactly what they say on the label, so be prepared for surprises.

This garden has all conditions – some sun, some shade, some dappled shade – so it's important to have some versatile plants that are happy to be planted in all of those areas to give continuity.

• I've used hydrangeas, Thalictrum and geraniums for this.

The Dining/Cooking Area

The third (seating) area is disguised by a staggered hedge of pleached apples – two types to allow pollination. They are climbing up one of the metal frames.

• This a secluded place to be, with two curving benches and stepping stones through the grass in between leading you into the last area.

The final area is a cooking area with pizza oven, table and chairs.

• It's paved with smaller units – sandstone setts – for a more intimate feel, while the granite worktop ledge ties in with the stone.

Plan Your Garden to Catch the Sun

This garden faces east west, so the terrace at one end catches the morning sun, and the terrace at the other end catches the evening sun.

• It's key when you're designing to look at the aspect and identify the sunny and shady spots and different times of day to work out the best places to sit.
• Make at least a couple of spots for sitting so that it's a flexible space.

Height

Height is key in a small garden – you have so much more space than your ground plan.

• Use climbers, and a pergola if you can, to create height, privacy and journey.
• The pergolas here are staggered so you can't see all the garden at once.
• Offsetting hedges or pergolas creates a sense of surprise and magic.

A Garden Should Be Inviting

When designing your landscaping, view the garden from inside the house to work out where your path should go. Make sure you can see the first part of the journey when you look out.

Next, the Plants

Hard landscaping is the first thing that goes in so it's important to get right. After that, focus on the plants to soften the hard landscaping.

• I never want the hard landscaping to be too obvious – here everything's softened so it feels like a green oasis.
• It doesn't need to be high maintenance – it can be a really simple planting scheme.

How Wide to Make Your Borders

Make sure you give your plants enough space, as well as the people using the garden.

• Don't make beds any narrower than 40-50cm.
• The beds against the wall here are 40cm, but this works because the climbers don't use much ground space, so there's room for geraniums and Astrantia to grow around the base.

Leave Room for Pots

Pots furnish a space, so allow room for them at the design stage. These can be added to over the years to give a sense of space.

• Again, consider the materials and harmonising with the hard landscaping and each other – we've used toning pale terracotta pots of various shapes.

The All-Important Practical Features

Remember the practicalities at the early stage:

• an outside tap (wall-mounted hosepipe won't take up much space)
• rainwater collection
• a small amount of lighting to see the garden after dark if you need it
• storage for tools, pots etc., somewhere that's easy to get to but can't be seen when using the garden – we've used the space under the pizza oven; you can also have a storage bench.

With Time the Garden Will Find Its Form

When you first build your garden the hard landscaping will look really obvious.

Bear with it because plants will grow and soften it and the materials will weather and fade, making the hard landscaping drop into the background.

Plants Will Grow to Fill Out a Garden

You can buy plants at all different sizes, so depending on budget, you can have a range of plants at different stages to give your garden a feeling of being there for some time already.

• If a plant is happy and looked after it will quickly grow.
• It will take a year or two for climbers to start covering the pergolas and the garden to feel bedded in, but with a little patience, it'll get there.

Plant Directory

Astrantia species and cultivars

Astrantia, masterwort

Hardy herbaceous perennials

Apiaceae

Brunnera macrophylla cultivars

Siberian bugloss

Hardy herbaceous perennials

Boraginaceae

Clematis species and cultivars

Clematis

Mostly hardy or half-hardy, deciduous or evergreen climbers; some are shrubs or herbaceous perennials

Ranunculaceae

Hosta species and cultivars

Plantain lilies

Hardy herbaceous perennials

Asparagaceae

Geranium species and cultivars

Cranesbills

Hardy perennials

Geraniaceae

Hydrangea species and cultivars

Hydrangeas

Hardy deciduous or evergreen shrubs or climbers

Hydrangeaceae

Lilium martagon

Martagon lily, Turk's cap lily

Hardy herbaceous perennial from a bulb

Liliaceae

Malus domestica cultivars

Apples

Hardy deciduous trees

Rosaceae

Robinia pseudoacacia

False acacia or black locust

Deciduous hardy tree

Fabaceae

Rosa species, hybrids and cultivars

Roses

Hardy deciduous or semi-evergreen shrubs or scrambling climbers

Rosaceae

Thalictrum species and cultivars

Meadow rue

Hardy herbaceous perennials

Ranunculaceae