Help Design a Large Garden

Aries

Lovely! thanks for sharing :T

Sexy_Legs

Thanks for that, I want to have a hammock at back of the garden as well that I bought in Thailand.

angelavdavis

Start by noting down exactly what you need and want from your garden.

List stuff like a clothes line, patio, bbq area, vegetable patch, greenhouse, shed, lawn, play area for the children, etc. Whatever you think you need.

Look at what already exists in the garden that you wish to keep and measure the garden so you have a good idea of scale.

Next, track which direction the sun rises from and sets. Note down where the sun stays the longest in the garden as this is where you want a patio, vegetable garden, etc. There might be a nice area that gets the last of the suns rays that could be ideal for a place to sit with a glass of wine in the evening.

You then need to put the shed in an area where a) it can't be seen from the house, b) it isn't going to cast a shadow on the garden, etc.

You will need to think about paths to get to the shed, etc when it is wet.

You may want to separate areas of your garden off into smaller rooms, so the whole expanse of your garden can't be seen at once - but has paths that lead you from one area to the next and offers interest.

Think about focal points and creating vistas.

Note all these things down on a piece of paper - it doesn't have to be to scale, just experiment with what you would like in your garden.

Get a soil tester and test the areas of the soil where you want to grow flowers and vegetables. It will give you an idea of whether your soil is acid or alkaline and therefore what plants are best suited to the soil you have.

Think also about how much time you will have to maintain your garden. Some people don't mind mowing a lawn (I hate it), whilst others plant shrubs to keep the gardening to a minimum.

When planning borders, start with trees and shrubs which would be located to the back of the border, and then place smaller shrubs and herbaceous plants toward the centre and front and intersperse with annuals and spring bulbs.

Then choose one little area and concentrate on that section first. Gradually increase the area to incorporate new features as you can afford them.

You have a lovely blank canvas but sometimes having a large garden can be daunting. So, tackle a little at a time, but bear in mind your needs/wish list as you plan it out.

Some additional tips can be found here including the BBC garden design software:
http://www.gardenseeker.com/design_your_own_garden.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/design/
http://www.howtodothings.com/home-garden/how-to-design-your-garden
http://www.ehow.com/video_4989749_design-dream-garden.html

I hope that helps you start anyway.

Sexy_Legs

Thank you so much for your detailed post and the links. I will have a look over the weekend and start to make plan.

Thanks again

D