If your garden is in disrepair, a redesign should be on the cards. Perhaps you’ve just moved into a new property and the garden has been neglected for years. Maybe your plants aren’t growing well, or your lawn appears worn and damaged. Or maybe your garden just isn’t aesthetically pleasing and you fancy a change.
Whatever the reason, many people look to improve their gardens every year. Few, however, see the potential of a complete redesign – removing any remnants of the old and the used, and starting afresh with a clean canvas. While small changes such as planting a fresh batch of plants or providing the grass with fertiliser can improve your garden’s visual image in the short term, a redesign offers the perfect opportunity to create long term change in your outdoor space.
Plants flourish in well-designed gardens with good soil and a good natural drainage system, and a clean canvas offers the best opportunity to create these conditions and allow your garden’s flora to thrive. Read on to learn more about redesigning from scratch and transform your garden into an outdoor paradise.
Blank Canvas
To give your garden the best chance for a fresh start, you need to reduce it to its bare components and replace them. This includes completely stripping the lawn to remove grass, any moss that may be thriving, roots and the top layer of soil.
Replace with new top soil, in which fresh grass should be able to grow uninterrupted from the advances of unwanted weeds. A new lawn can completely transform a garden’s image, leaving it looking healthy and rejuvenated. Nothing screams well-cared-for than a well-groomed, well coloured lawn. Replacing an old lawn can also create a better natural draining system, promoting improved growth.
Flowering
For the same reasons, it is important to replace your flowerbeds with a new layer of top soil to allow plants to grow to their full potential.
Once you’ve replaced the foundations, the fun really begins as you start to design your new dream garden. To properly decorate your new garden, be sure to plant a range of colourfully flowering plants, whilst retaining subtlety.
Take inspiration from local flower shows or TV shows, and don’t forget that with the internet at your fingertips there is a whole community of gardening enthusiasts posting their tips and recommendations for you to use. After replacing the top soil to create a truly flower-friendly environment, the possibilities for design are near endless and you should have no trouble growing whichever plants you choose so long as they are in season.
Paving
A redesign also offers the perfect opportunity for some structural changes. As you replace your lawn, consider reducing the amount of land covered by grass and instead build a new decking or garden patio.
Complete your redesign in time for next summer and make the most of your new, freshly-paved BBQ space. If you already have paving, this should also be replaced as part of your garden’s overhaul. Damaged or worn paving stones can make the whole area look tired and unloved, and for many visitors it will be the first thing they notice. This is especially the case if the rest of your garden has been replaced, as anything left untouched will stick out like a sore thumb.
Replace with stylish sandstone paving to improve the garden’s overall image. As the saying goes, if you’re going to do a job you may as well do it properly, and if your garden is in need of more than a little tender loving care, reducing it to a clean canvas will allow you to let your creativity flow and create the garden of your dreams. Have fun and enjoy your new outdoor haven.
Matt Coussens is the director of Milestone Supplies, which provide Roofing, Natural Stone and Reclaimed products.
