Part 3: Small Design Of Home Garden With Some Plants
If you have a change of level right outside your patio doors and can hardly get a chair there, let alone a table, it might be nice to dig back some extra space to make the area more usable.. The slope in this small back garden made it almost impossible to use. By terracing the garden into three defined levels, each area became a useable space. So take a look at your wish list - what do you want from the garden and does what you've drawn achieve it? If not, what can you do differently by adjusting and moving the 'empty spaces' around? Linking Changes of Level Whilst we're on the subject of changes in level, one thing that's very important is to line up any steps with the door or windows you look out from the most. This is because if there is a solid wall (yes, even if it is only a foot high) your eyes automatically stop at the wall, even if there is a fair amount of garden the other side of that wall. But if you have steps in place, your eyes follow the steps up and link the rest of the garden. Having two separate spaces in a garden can be nice, but visually you need them to link or your brain will just see two small spaces rather than one larger space. So it really helps if the view you look out from the most has the steps to visually join the dots. This small cottage garden looks three times larger because of the way the steps and new shape of the retaining wall lead the eye up the garden and link the patio with the garden beyond.
The curved path takes your eyes from side-to-side which makes it look and feel wider and longer. Creating Level Changes If your garden is as flat as the proverbial pancake then creating a change in level can bring an extra dimension to your garden. I don't tend to change the ground level because gardens without steps are safer. I prefer to create areas of raised borders, often with built-in seating. You do, of course, need to be really careful when adding a raised border or seating area because it does take up space. So, again, design the shape of the 'empty spaces' first, then and only then add the raised beds. It's not necessarily going to work in every garden, especially if they are really tiny, but experiment, nonetheless. Creating built-in seating areas in your garden can be a really good use of space and can add a lot of interest to your design. Another advantage of seating is that it can be used for storage if you add a hinge to the seat base. The seating areas can be built from timber, stone clad walling, brick or rendered block work, as shown in the photographs above. Paving slabs make an excellent material for the top of the seat, as long as temperatures don’t get too hot in the summer. You can also use paving slabs to build the entire structure.
It can look very effective to have the paving slabs running up into a seating area in the same direction as the patio. This continuation of landscape material can also make the area look and feel larger. See the example drawing.. Creating Vertical Interest Adding another layer of height to your design by incorporating upright structures like pergolas, arches, planting rails and small trees also help add more interest to your garden. Again, this may not work in extremely tiny gardens but can be very effective to make a space feel larger because your eyes go up as well as along, when viewing the garden. How do you tell if adding a vertical element will work in your garden? There are a couple of ways I find help me visualise how it will look. If you are adding a pergola, get hold of some very tall bamboo canes and place them where you would build the pergola. This will enable you to get a feel for impact an upright structure will bring. If you're unable to get hold of tall canes or the ground is too solid to push them into, then the next solution will help you. Take some photos of your garden and trace over the outline of it and add the design shape you've done so far. Then draw in the pergola, arch or whatever upright element you want to add.
This really doesn't have to be a great work of art. Tracing over the photographs will get the right perspective and proportion and just drawing in a few upright lines to represent the pergola etc. should help give you enough of an idea to visualise how it will look. Also check how you feel about the addition. Does your gut tighten at the thought of it or do you feel all warm and fuzzy? It's important that you don't feel hemmed in and claustrophobic. Adding anything to the garden has to work and if it doesn't feel right, don't do it! That's more important than adding something just because you read it in a book. I don't add upright structures to every small garden I design. In fact, probably to only 25% of them. Every garden and situation is individual and a good design is tailored to take these things into account. In this book, I'm suggesting options you can pick from. You don't need to do every last one of them to create a nice garden. The somewhat irritating phrase 'less is more' springs to mind (it is actually true when it comes to great design). Whilst I want to encourage you to really go for it with your small garden design and create lots of interest it does still need simplicity in the design. Think of it like a beautiful car. The overall shape is sleek and understated yet the alloy wheels, paint and trim add the extra pizzazz. So keep the design shapes simple, then decorate with the extras like water features, paving details and so on.
Funnily enough the next chapter is dedicated to how to add that pizzazz or 'WOW' factor as I call it. We'll look at everything from paving details, lighting and lots of other yummy features. Chapter 4 Summary: Smaller sizes of paving will trick your eyes into thinking areas are larger than they actually are. Careful jungle like planting is very effective in small gardens. Choose the plants to suit the garden style you want to achieve. Use changes in level to your advantage. Add interest with raised planters but always think about the underlying design shapes first. Chapter 5 - Adding the 'WOW' to Your Garden So far, we've concentrated on the bones of design, how it flows and functions and most importantly keeping things simple. Now it's time to add the glitz and the glamour and create something really special with your garden. The simplest ways to add a bit sparkle to your garden is by using features.
