In the zone

Top tips for maximising space in a small garden from designer Jack Wallington

• In very small gardens it can sometimes be better to concentrate on a single view in order to have maximum impact from the house but in many cases, dividing a space into zones can help it seem larger, and helps ensure the space is used to its fullest, too.

• Zoning can be achieved by dividing areas with trellis, flowerbeds, hedges or a small shrub, or by different surface treatments, for example lawn, gravel, hard landscaping, and so on. In urban gardens, I prefer to use the same landscaping materials throughout for consistency – I find it’s better to let the plants do the talking.

• Try to place your different areas – for seating, dining or for raised beds or pots, for example – in different corners of the garden and don’t forget about the edges. A bench tucked away in a side bed and perhaps backed by a mass of Clematis ‘Apple Blossom’ or Trachelospermum jasminoides makes a lovely place to sit and invites people to stop and linger.

• Introducing angles or curves to your garden design often means that you can’t see the whole space in one go, which I think makes the experience better and more fulfilling. Diagonal lines can be useful as they make the view feel longer.

• Zones can be vertical as well as horizontal. In this garden, the wooden screen behind the sofa in the barbecue area acts like a frame or an anchor, effectively delineating the space. It also meant we could easily incorporate lighting and a log store, too.