Create space to socialise

Making your garden work hard for you can be tricky, but multiple lockdowns have encouraged us to spend more time outdoors. Gardens have become important to our physical and mental wellbeing, and since many gardens have the ability to extend the inside outside, cooking and lounging areas have become much more prominent.

In this garden, left, the areas are softened by planting and the colour of the sofa and pergola tone together to make a large space feel connected for use by a single family or for greater gatherings, as and when the pandemic allows. The space can be used all year (especially with a big barbecue that you can cook a Christmas dinner in) and herbs in planters are useful for an impromptu feast, as well as being conveniently located just outside the kitchen.

Try at home

1 Add a pergola, if permissions allow, to create a sense of enclosure and to hang lights.

2 Neutral hard landscaping tones allow for colourful structures.

3 Add a splash of colour to your planting and tone it in to match any accessories.

4 Create an easy-to-clean space so an impromptu barbecue doesn’t become a chore.