Inspiration and advice on creating a beautiful space to dine, entertain and play
Want to transform your outdoor space? Follow our guide to making your garden beautiful, from planting and landscaping to spaces for dining, entertaining and play
1 let grass grow
Including grass in your garden design? Think about whether you want the authentic stuff or prefer artificial turf. While the designs of the past were easy to spot, today’s versions are extremely realistic. You won’t need storage space for a mower, meaning it can be a particularly good option for small gardens. Mud when the weather’s wet and parching during droughts
won’t be issues either. Artificial grass can also stand up to kids’ games and the efforts of the dog to dig it up, but you’ll need to prepare the ground and put down a weed-proof membrane. The downsides? It will cost you more to lay than genuine turf and it has a limited lifespan (from around seven to up to 20 years).
If you prefer real grass, you can choose from grass seed or turf rolls. Laying rolls of turf means a new lawn much faster than with grass seed, but you’ll need to put them down within 24 hours of delivery. Turf can be laid from early autumn to early spring. Creating a grassy area from seed will save you money compared to turf, but you’ll have to wait longer for your lawn – until June if you sow in autumn, or until late autumn if you sow in spring. A lawn should be created alongside the soft landscaping when the beds will also be outlined, then planted.
2 Consider landscaping materials
Hard landscaping like drainage and levelling, fencing and retaining walls, paving and decking, and preparations for a lawn should all take place at the beginning of a garden makeover. The choices you make for the materials and the divisions between them will be led by the look you’re after for your space, as well as the function of different zones, like cooking, dining, relaxing or partying.
Underfoot, sandstone, including Yorkstone, is a popular choice, or pick stones such as granite or limestone. If you’re opting for the latter, be sure it will stand up to winter conditions. Porcelain, like inside your house, can create the appearance of wood or concrete. Consider the maintenance you’ll need to undertake when you’re choosing: some paving offers superior algae resistance.
As for the colour palette, think about complementing your house and your style, but also about colours that will help it blend with the planting. Greys, mid and dark browns and even dull reds look harmonious alongside it.
How you lay paving also matters. Random patterns with different sizes of slab create a more traditional effect, whereas a single slab size and a linear layout looks contemporary.
3 DECIDE ON DECKING
Decking can help zone a garden, providing areas for seating and dining, and create level areas within a sloping plot. The lowest cost option is to lay softwood boards; opt for pressure-treated timber, which gives the wood more durability and resistance to rot and other hazards that can reduce a deck’s longevity. Hardwood decking is more costly but has a long life span and is resistant to rot and warping. If you’re taking on the garden makeover yourself, know that hardwoods are trickier to install.
Composite boards, made with plastic and wood fibre, are durable, resistant to warping and splitting, and low maintenance. However, you wouldn’t be able to change the finish in future.
If you live in a house, laying decking falls into the permitted development (PD) regime, so you won’t need planning permission to add it if you follow the rules: decking can be no more than 30cm above the ground and, together with extensions and outbuildings, must cover no more than 50 per cent of the garden. Check that there aren’t other restrictions that apply to your house, though, and remember that flats and maisonettes don’t have these PD allowances.
4 CREATE AN OUTDOOR KITCHEN
You might find a barbecue sufficient for alfresco food preparation, but consider upgrading to a full outdoor kitchen as part of your makeover. That way, you can prepare whole meals outside with guests around rather than splitting your time between indoors and out.
As well as a built-in barbecue, your outdoor kitchen could include an outdoor oven or a kamado for roasting, grilling or smoking. Burners will allow you to use saucepans. Think, too, about whether you want a sink, tap or fridge. The latter will need to be a model that’s suitable for outdoor use. If you need water or electricity, these services will need to be run to the area as part of the initial garden work.
Work surfaces create space for preparation and plating up and should be made of a weatherproof material – some stones, concrete, or an ultracompact engineered surface could fit the bill. Storage for equipment avoids the trek back and forth to the house.
Avoid decking underfoot in an outdoor kitchen area as food can fall between the boards. Choose non-porous paving in case of spills, and opt for slip resistance to make cooking safer.
5 plan planting
A garden doesn’t have to be generously sized to pack a punch with its planting. A tiny city garden, or a long narrow strip, as well as more spacious plots, have plenty of potential but you do need to decide from the outset how much of the area will be devoted to planting, and what style you want. You may be after traditional cottage borders, or perhaps plants that will attract wildlife. Alternatively, you might want to create an architectural effect with sizeable plants that create strong outlines. Some prefer to go with a particular colour scheme: for example using hot shades or cooler tones. Think about whether you want to grow food for your table, too.
You must also consider the soil conditions in your garden and choose plants accordingly. You should be able to see and feel the difference between gritty sandy soil, sticky-when-wet clay, spongy peat, and smooth silt and loam soils. Put a handful of soil in a jar of vinegar and, if it froths, it’s chalky and alkaline. You can also pick up a test kit in a garden centre to discover the ph of your soil. It’s also important to consider the orientation of your plot so you can think about which areas will be sunny and which shady at different times of the day.
When you’re considering the planting, factor in how much time maintenance will take. A successful makeover will create a garden you can keep on top of. For a lower-maintenance space, think hardy evergreen shrubs that don’t take much work. Incorporating strong structural elements such as paving and/or gravelled areas, paths, large planters and even sculptures will help give the space style and interest while keeping chores down, too.
6 Think garden buildings and structures
Consider how much storage you need in your garden: a shed sized to take hand and power tools, plus the furniture you need to put away out of season, should be in the plan for your makeover from the start. If the space is small, you may be able to scale down to a mini shed or storage bench for all that’s required to tend the garden, so you don’t encroach on usable room.
You might also like the idea of a glazing-heavy summerhouse-style building to provide seating with views to the plot but shelter from wind and showers; one of these can equally make a space for hobbies or additional play room. There are designs that are shed and summerhouse in one, too, so you don’t need to double up on buildings to get a seating area plus storage.
Vertical structures such as walls, fences, screens, pergolas and arbours are also important to a garden design, balancing the horizontals of the space. They can help distinguish the different zones of the design, provide privacy and shelter, and they create an opportunity to grow climbers. They’re not just for large gardens either. Vertical elements can actually help make a small garden feel bigger by delivering different areas to view and explore, rather than letting the eye take in the entire space in one go. Vertical sections are also handy for hiding unsightly essentials like the wheelie bins, or concealing a less than lovely view beyond the garden.
7 enjoy sun & shade
The way your garden faces is an important consideration when you’re planning seating and dining areas. A patio area outside the house may need shading if it’s to be functional all day long, and a pergola with shade-creating climbers or an awning could keep it comfortable at different hours.
You might want to plan two or more seating or dining areas to accommodate the movement of the sun. For example, the terrace at the back of the house in an east-facing garden could be the perfect spot to enjoy a sunny breakfast or morning coffee, but you might want to sit or dine at the end of your plot later in the day when the area by the house is in shade. North-facing gardens are the trickiest as there’s shade for most of the day. On the upside, from May to October – when you’ll want to spend time outside – you can enjoy evening sun.
If your garden faces south, you’ll likely want to design areas of shade into it as there will be little naturally. Trees and tall hedges, as well as elements like garden parasols, are your allies.
8 bright light
Whether you want to eat outside in the evenings or you like the idea of overlooking your garden after dark, it’s important to plan exterior lighting from the start. ‘A little light goes a long way at night,’ says Sally Storey, creative director at John Cullen Lighting. ‘Use lighting selectively; choose your key features and focus on them. Darkness can be used to conceal any less attractive areas.’
Illuminate paths, steps and other circulation areas. ‘Wallmounted pillar up/downlights can be dramatic, or use wall lanterns for a softer solution,’ says Sally. ‘Add a wash of light to the planting surrounding your alfresco dining area to show off the colours and flowers when it gets dark.’ Cooking areas will need task lighting so you can prepare and cook safely.
Garden lighting and cabling must be designed for exterior use. Lighting fixed to the outside of your house is subject to building regulations, and you need to use an installer registered with a competent person scheme or get building control approval.
9 link indoors and outdoors
If you’re building a rear extension, it can be the perfect time to tackle your plot as well – but even if not, blurring the boundary between outdoors and in creates the illusion that both spaces are bigger than their actual dimensions.
One trick is to lay a patio or terrace in a material that matches the interior flooring. This works especially well if the room has bi-fold or sliding doors that create a wide opening. Team wooden flooring with decking outside, or lay similar tiles – but make sure they’re suitable for exterior conditions, including being slip-proof when wet.
The two spaces could also be linked with colour, with interior and exterior walls in the same hue, or try repeating materials with exposed brick inside linking to a garden wall.
Planning an outdoor kitchen?
Link its run of units with a kitchen run inside so they have a seamless feel. Even simpler is to introduce greenery where house and garden meet with raised planters at window level.
10 Meet your children’s needs
If your garden’s to be used by kids as well as adults, the design needs careful thought to ensure it’s safe – and it needs to be robust. Think about creating zones to separate play and seating areas, and pay attention to the surfaces you lay. You might want an area with grass for ball games, or bark chips or another forgiving surface for areas with sizeable climbing equipment, for example. Separate zones with low dividers to keep activities apart without blocking the views that allow you to keep an eye out.
Think about what’s in your planting plan for a child-friendly garden. With many plants, issues arise if they’re ingested, and some have sap that can irritate the skin – for example, euphorbia and, vegetable growers should note, parsnips. Review your planting list via an authority like the RHS. Consider, too, which areas are likely to be hit with footballs and other objects, and stick to tough planting for these borders.
Sloping gardens can be a problem if you have young kids, so build fences into the design to keep them away from slopes. Be safety conscious if you’re including a water feature – even shallow water can be a hazard for children.