Make a playground

DESIGNER: Eoin Ryan of Inspire Landscape, (01) 297 3344, 086 172 7669; inspirelandscape.ie

WHAT: Client Lynda Browne wanted a child-friendly garden that would be fun, both for her own three boys and for Lily Montessori school, which she runs from her home.

She also wanted a place for grown-ups to entertain. Eoin Ryan of Inspire Landscape designed a modern family garden with several sitting areas to suit morning and evening sun. Instead of hedging off a children’s play area, he mixed the garden with play stations.

“It’s nice to engage with children when they’re playing, particularly when they are young. Lynda runs a Montessori school so it was important for her to be able to keep an eye on the children and she also didn’t want the garden split up.”

He used artificial grasss, a garden trend he has noticed is increasingly in demand in family gardens. “About 60pc of the grass I put in now is artificial,” he says. While some garden-lovers might throw their hands up in horror, Eoin points out that artificial lawns drain well, stop kids getting mucky and tramping mud through the house, and are usable year-round. In this garden, he added sheltered areas in the kitchen play station and playhouse for rainy days. “Outdoor kitchens and sand pits allow kids to get messy and use their imaginations,” he says, “An outdoor kitchen can be a bench and plastic basin. They love pretending to be grown ups and making a mess.

“Plastic swings and slides aren’t that attractive,” he says, “so when it comes to play sets, try to screen them or have timber ones made that can be painted, avoid bright plastics.” The sandpit is cleverly concealed beneath a sliding deck.

COST: Total cost, €12,000; chalkboard, €120; play kitchen with roof €600 (excludes accessories); deck with sand pit, €650.