Advice Hub

The transformation process
From wilderness to elegant garden

Back in early 2019, Bel was contacted by clients in Loughborough in the depths of a large renovation project of a 1930's property.  Keen to plan ahead they were looking to have a garden design plan ready for and waiting for when the builders left site. 
 
The clients had two key requests - a substantial kitchen garden, with space for a Greenhouse, raised beds and fruit trees and a level croquet lawn. As the clients are very busy, and keen to spend their time concentrating on growing produce, the ornamental planting was to be kept to a minimum  whilst still offering year-round colour and interest.  

Bel created a Garden Design Package to develop the site tailored to the clients needs and budget. The physical transformation began in early May 2020 in the midst of the Pandemic. Thankfully the team were able to work outside safely and rapidly cleared the site and set to the construction of the kitchen garden raised beds, paving and greenhouse base. The oak sleeper terracing then went in which enabled 2 large level 'terraces' to be created which would be used for the croquet lawn and kitchen garden areas. The level changes across the site created steps, tiered pathways and seating areas and a pathway to access the kitchen garden easily from the house. A raised pathway  also allowed for an area to view the croquet lawn during play.  A series of timber square framed arches were installed, adding height and framing the view to the kitchen garden. An orchard area for fruit trees was created adjacent  to the kitchen garden and the ground laid with wildflower meadow turf to attract wildlife.  To the rear, the mature trees were selectively pruned and rejuvenated then underplanted with woodland style planting, offering a wilder area within the garden...

I was contacted by the owners of this garden back in July 2018.  They had just bought the property and were having an extension built at the time. I visited shortly afterwards to see how we could transform the  rough messy lawn and overgrown shrubs into a low maintenance elegant space for the clients to enjoy.  They longed for a greenhouse, planting beds and seating areas for entertaining family.  There was limited space to play with and the garden was overlooked by several neighboring properties. 

Bel created 2D and 3D design plans and visuals for the garden to show the clients how the space could be transformed. These were accompanied by mood boards showing the features for the space along with dimensional plans for the landscapers to use whilst setting out the various patio, pathway and planting beds. A scope of works was also provided which detailed the work involved in landscaping the garden and which could be used by the landscaper to draw up a quote for the works. Find out more about the Garden Design Process ...

For all projects, regardless of size i like to provide my clients with as much information as possible - plenty of detail about the features, style and layout of the space plus in depth information for the landscapers to quote and build from. So what can you expect from Garden Design Package?  The following images represent the documents presented to clients on a project in Loughborough. The garden has now been landscaped and planted as shown below.

A pack of detailed documents was provided to the owners of this recently renovated property at the Concept Design Presentation. The pack included:

​Garden Design Plan - A detailed 2D colour plan, drawn to scale showing the proposed layout for the garden including paving, pathways, lawn, edgings, terracing, planting beds etc. The plan is annotated with notes relating to the features in the garden.  These plans are produced digitally so they are accurate, clear and easy to interpret. 

Mood Boards - Quality colour mood boards printed on photo paper which convey the mood of the proposed scheme, including landscaping materials, features and planting style

3D Visuals - A series of 3D Virtual Reality visuals showing various views of the garden to assist in conveying the style, layout and feel of the space. These are created digitally using CAD and Rendering Software...

What very strange times we are living through at the moment! Whilst vast teams of carers, food distribution works, politicians, amongst others, fight the war on Covid 19 so many of use are heeding the advice to stay at home. 
Stuck within the confines of our homes and gardens it's easy to get restless and we all need something to keep us busy. So i urge you to get out into your garden (following the social distancing guidelines obviously!). 
The sun is shining and spring has arrived so with more time on our hands now is a perfect opportunity to take a look at what we have and make the most of it. 
​FREE GARDENING ADVICE >>> There are lots of articles on the ADVICE HUB which i have written to inspire your next project, be it ideas for screening, paving, planting borders and pots, encouraging wildlife, transforming small gardens and so much more. 
And what's more it's all free advice and at your disposal!...
If you'd like more detailed advice about your garden project, i am taking bookings for remote consultations. Get in touch to find out more

Hand Drawn Plans versus Computer Aided Design
Many garden designers opt to create hand drawn design plans, which can be works of art in their own right. Although i do love to draw, I find that hand drawing, colouring and labelling plans can be very time consuming, especially if an amendment needs to be made and its back to beginning again! 
I've always been technology savvy and I'm also pretty proficient with pen and paper too. Up until 2018 i had been combining my skills by hand drawing 2D concept designs and planting plans and then using CAD software to add the finishing touches - colouring in the plans and labelling them, i found  colour rendering and annotating on a pc the most efficient use of my time, with consistent neat results and easy alterations.
In January 2019 i progressed on to using 2D and 3D computer software for the whole design process, from initially creating a to-scale plan of the site through to the final concept design plans and 3D visualisations.​  From Jan 2021 all of our Garden Design Packages will contain 3D Virtual Reality Visuals showing true to life images of how the new garden will look. 

​Why do i opted to use CAD software? Well increasingly i've wanted to be able to offer my clients a really accurate to-scale representation of their garden...