A BLAZE OF RED

Make the most of a compact, overlooked space with a series of distractions, from a pergola to other eyecatching details.

• Trouble tracking down glazed pots in your preferred size and colour? Gloss red exterior paint turns plain lightweight pots into fiery beauties. Or, for custom-coloured planters, try potsrus.com.au.

• Black or charcoal painted fencing, be it paling or screen-like, will complement green foliage beautifully and soften the hardscaping.

• You can never have enough storage or spare seating. Check out the Applaro mobile outdoor storage bench, $179, ikea.com.au.

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Create an illusion of space by zoning your layout using pavers to define the dining or seating areas. Here, narrow pathways open out wide to accommodate the outdoor table. To emulate the intimacy of a room, red planters take the place of walls.

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If any garden needs a shed, it’s a tiny one! Strewn with tools and equipment, it spells ruin for its appearance. To minimise the shed’s impact, put it at the far end of the garden, paint it charcoal or black and erect an adjoining pergola so it blends into the landscape.

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Make the most of the limited space by tucking a modular outdoor lounge in a corner of your garden. To light the night, hang red Japanese lanterns with ba ery tea lights.

17 MASS APPEAL

Red planters will brighten up what could be a dull vista, providing unexpected interest the eye can land on. Fill the pots with red flowering dwarf canna lilies, gerberas and impatiens. Grow each species in separate planters for mass appeal.