Garden Design Services
Over 10,000 rated tradespeople
are ready to help you get your job done
Over 3 million happy homeowners
have found a quality tradesperson
Over 1 million ratings
with 88,000 5* ratings in the last 12 months
Our most popular gardener / landscape gardeners jobs
Join our group of happy customers
Thousands of 5 star reviews
Read real reviews from customers about their service experiences.
Excellent job done would recommend
Robert
James was responsive to our request for a quote, for felling a large ash tree we suspected had died. He replied to messages quickly, turned up when he said he would, and was correct that our tree had in fact died. James was professional the whole time and we would have no hesitation in hiring and recommending him to others in the future.
Joanne
Excellent service. Hard working, polite, professional team. Lovely job. Would recommend.
Anne
Below you’ll find information to help you understand the different elements of garden design and the key things to be aware of before you start transforming your outside space. Find some initial ideas to talk through with a garden designer, including making the most of a small garden.
Browse Garden Design specialists
Take a look at our Garden Design specialists profiles, read reviews and request quotes directly.
Garden Design Services
What does garden design involve?
Garden design is about more than mowing a lawn and putting a couple of plants in the ground. A good design takes into account a few key elements:
- How you want to use the space.
- The amount of light the garden receives, and at what times of the day.
- The quality of your soil.
For example, you won’t want to put a shed in the best spot for catching a bit of sun, or have a patio that’s entirely in the shade.
A garden designer will help you make the most of the available space, no matter how big or small. They’ll also establish how keen a gardener you are to make sure the finished garden is either easy to maintain, or gives you something to get your teeth into – if you’re the green-fingered type.
Cost of garden design work
The cost of the work will depend on what you’re having done and the size of your garden, but prices tend to start at around £200. A good garden designer will discuss what you want to get out of your garden and ask you about your budget before coming up with ideas.
Low maintenance garden ideas
- You can stop a garden from looking untidy by dividing it into small sections. Plants, hedges, low walls and raised beds give a sense of order. Paths made from wood chips, slabs or bark help prevent weeds.
- Growing plants at different heights can give the illusion of there being more than there are, so you get the look of a fuller garden, with fewer plants to keep healthy. Shrubs, herbs and verbena are low maintenance plant options for adding colour.
- Rockeries and water features don’t need much looking after. Avoid shallow water features to save needing to top them up when they dry out. If you’d like a pond, avoid getting fish as the pH balance of the water settles naturally without them, giving you fewer algae problems so less cleaning time.
- To save cutting the lawn, artificial turf could be your best friend but if you want the real thing and don’t mind doing a little cutting every now and again, slow growing or drought resistant turf could be better options.
Ideas for small gardens
- To create more space, choose similar flooring to the inside of your home when picking the outside tiling.
- Divide a garden into different sections and add diagonal or winding paths. Extending the time it takes to get from one side of the garden to the other will make it feel bigger.
- Laying pavers at an angle to the property instead of parallel will draw the eye across the garden and extend the space.
- Attaching foliaged climbers to wires across areas of your garden will give it an extra dimension.
- Think about growing upwards rather than outwards with a trellis attached to your fence, or a vertical wall made up of climbers, grasses and ferns. A green wall can also help you lower your energy bills through providing more insulation and reducing the amount of heat that’s lost through the wall of your home. When it comes to choosing other plants, pick types that grow upwards like sweet peas and black-eyed susans so they take up less room.
Planning permission for garden design jobs
Planning permission only comes into play when you’re building or installing decking, fences, walls and gates. You’ll need to apply for planning permission if:
- The decking would be higher than 30cm above the ground.
- The decking or other raised platforms would cover more than half of the total area of the garden.
- A fence, gate or wall would be over 2 metres high, or over 1 metre high near a highway that’s used by vehicles (or a footpath next to the highway).
- The fence, gate or wall would form a boundary with a listed building or land.
If you live in a listed building or you have a front garden that you want to pave over, you should check with your Local Planning Authority as different rules may apply.
Insurance for garden design work
While it’s not a legal requirement, it’s a good idea for all garden designers to have public liability insurance so they’re covered for personal injuries or accidental damage to a property.
Questions you should ask your garden designer
- How long have they been working as a garden designer for?
- Can they show you examples of work they’ve carried out?
- Can they give you a scaled design of what the finished garden will look like?
- Do they have public liability insurance and what does this cover?
- Will they give a guarantee for the work and how long does this last? Are there separate guarantees for different plants?
- Does the quote for the work include waste disposal? If not, check with your local council how you would go about getting it taken away.
'%3e%3cpath%20fill-rule='evenodd'%20clip-rule='evenodd'%20d='M12.5%2020.392a1%201%200%2001-.54.888l-5.274%202.73a1%201%200%2001-1.435-1.109l1.494-6.588a1%201%200%2000-.306-.964l-4.723-4.254c-.65-.586-.287-1.666.585-1.74l6.105-.514a1%201%200%2000.846-.629L12.5%200v20.392z'%20fill='%23F7DB34'%20/%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/svg%3e){kind=small}
Carpentry (Certified Fire Door Installer/competent person) Electrical and general builder
We are a family run and owned Joinery based company of 20 years .All types of Joinery 1st & 2nd fix ,Doors ,flooring. Kitchens ,Commercial ,Shop fit out Media Walls , Wall Panelling ,Decking , Garden Rooms , Fencing, We also cater for new builds extensions and general building work A 5 Star Rated Company
Excellent service from Lee's team - quickly quoted for job - turned up as agreed and finished the job on time - I would highly recommend this company for anything you need to know about fire doors! Thankyou!
Construction and brickpaving company...we have been In business since 2005 with over 100 happy customers to date no job too small.... James eves JLE paving ????
James is a fantastic tradesman: he is highly skilled and knowledgeable. James is a great communicator and he talked me through all the options. What a hard working and friendly person. I highly recommend James
RJR Home Improvements are here to help! We are a family run business who pride ourselves on high quality workmanship and customer care. We offer a friendly reliable and trustworthy service. Our high standards and customer satisfaction is of the utmost importance to us. Our skills cover the whole building sector, everything from odd jobs as small as garden & gutter clearances to full refurbishments & replacements from top to bottom of your home. We have a combined experience of 45 years in the trade which means when you choose RJR you can rest assured that your project is in the best of hands.
Ryan was punctual at all times. His communication skills are excellent. Ryan and the team worked efficiently and effectively. The finish on the job was good. I believe that he diagnosed correctly the problem with the roof. I can’t confirm yet whether the leak has been resolved. I’ll have to wait until it rains!
PEARL CLEANING & GARDENING LIMITED
Fantastic service everything I wanted done and more would highly recommend this company
All brickwork,slabbing,steps,monoblocking,fencing & drainage.All landscaping and garden design.I have 40 years of experience,and have never left a customer unhappy with my work.I will offer the best advice for the job in hand.
Very helpful an friendly did a great job
Landscaping company that specialises in low mantinance , astroturf ect.
Hi im James I run an established Garden an Landscaping company, I have 17 years experience, I Design and Build Gardens. take a look through my photos to see what I do. I pride myself on great communication skills. Based in North London
James and his team were brilliant - punctual, neat and very nice, and they have transformed our back garden with great work and lovely ideas. I would really recommend them.
We are a family run business priding ourselves in quality workmanship at affordable prices customer satisfaction is guaranteed we cover all aspects of roofing gardening and general property maintenance with over 20 years experience all quotations are free
Carl and the team undertook a full landscape, fencing and decking project. It wasn't a small task, with hidden tree stumps, heavily overgrown garden and uneven levels. The team were brilliant and had the whole garden fully landscaped, including a new fence, roll on lawn, deck and a few other additional tasks completed within a week. Team turned up on time every day and worked solidly to get the job finished within the quoted timeframe. Would strongly recommend Root2Roof for the works they completed.
We are a family run driveway and landscaping business based in the Leicestershire. We have over 20years experience in the trade and are passionate about the work we do. We are proud of our excellent reputation and the quality of our workmanship.
RT Property ServicesAREA(Leeds , Halifax, Huddersfield, Manchester, Bradford-all Yorkshire)-renovations, Painting &decorating , Wallpaper hanging, Plumbing, tilling, flooring-laminate/carpets, bathrooms installation , Fencing, maintenance Services.
Rafael did a fabulous job, highly recommended. Definitely 5 stars
My name it’s Cris. I am a person with many qualities in handyman.What a handyman means? A handyman, also known as a handyperson or handyworker, is a person skilled at a wide range of repairs, typically around the home. These tasks include trade skills, repair work, maintenance work, are both interior and exterior, and are sometimes described as "side work", "odd jobs" or "fix-up tasks". For me a handyman means the person who helps the people who are in need or not having the necessary training for that thing and at the same time the one who later gives a smile to the people's face. For this, please contact me in any need you have
Christian and his team were friendly, courteous, and did a great job at the quoted price with no surprises.
We have 45 years experience between us in the construction industry and 25 years experience in all types of roofing including rubber, fibreglass, slate and tiled roofing. Chimney removals, facias soffits and water goods. & fitting vellux windows. We also have 25 years experience in groundworks., landscaping, operating plant. bricklaying, rendering. we specialise in new builds, extensions, renovations, loft & garage conversions & damproofing. We have a lot of experience in sourcing properties to renovate for resale and rental. We cover all aspects of home improvements.
Excellent service. Got the job done well and very professional.
Dear Customers IE-DESIGN with years of experience offers interior and exterior work such as painting and decorating.We also undertake and manage landscaping and gardening services of any kind. Additionally our experience leads to the unique 3D projects if required. We can promise a competitive price and perfect finish as Customer satisfaction is at the heart of everything we do.
BZ GARDENS was established in 2010 and has quickly grown to become a well-established and well-regarded business, working at the top end of our industry. Our business model is built on constantly challenging ourselves to conceive, create and care for unique gardens and open spaces for residential, commercial and public clients across London, Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Surrey and West Sussex.
From providing estimates to signing contracts, we have been very impressed with BZ Gardens. Thank you.
Family run business with over 20years experience, covering most areas. Our work speeks for its self, plenty off customer feed back, reviews, etc etc. All your maintenance needs under one company. Reliable service / at competitive prices. One call sorts it all. Work description inc.... •Exterior /interior painting. •Wall coatings. •garden fencing, built / repaired .Decking •pointing •Exterior walls rendered. •All roofline work / flat roof maintenance. • weather proof coatings. •powerwashing services. •Guttering repairs/renew. •Garden maintenance. Where customers satisfaction is our aim. Always at hand for any advice or help.
Amazing job! Very friendly and professional! Was always kept up to do what with what being done etc! Definitely recommend! Thank you both so much!
Family run business, with thirty years experience in the industry. We are a friendly and reliable service.
A good job, expertly carried out, but not quite up to our expectations with clearing the debris. It took us two days to get the garden back to normal. The second phase of the order is yet to be done and I’m sure that they will satisfy our requirements.
Executive paving ltd are a reputable company specialising in block paving driveways & patios, brick work, key kerb edging slabbing/natural sandstone and other general building work Including fencing artificial grass - resin We have a wide variety of patterns and designs to chose from. We will beat any genuine quote.
Executive Paving were very professional and courteous. Also, were fully aware of my disability and help me a lot. The finished job is most impressive.
www.cgtbuild.com We are c g t building services We are a highly skilled, family run business with over 30 years experience in the building and landscaping sector. We pride ourselves in giving 100% customer satisfaction and can guarantee competitive prices against leading organisations, and have a solid team of dedicated and experienced tradesmen, producing quality, skilled craftsmanship, and delivering projects both on time and to budget. Our combined skills mean we can offer a full range of building services from fencing and decking, to extensions and refurbs. as well as having a fully licenced fleet of waste removal vans, offering a fast, and reliable waste clearance service at very competetive prices. so whether youre looking to extend, restore, or refurb, or are in need of a new kitchen fitted, or youre looking to clear out your garage or landscape your garden. Theres only the one team you need. The C G Team
The team did a great job helping us get new kitchen doors, panels and plinths in. They also helped to get us ready for our new worktops to be measured up and our applicances reinstalled once the new worktop was fitted. They were really helpful and worked around the changing delivery dates from our suppliers
We are a landscape gardening company and are fully qualified and insured tree surgeons. we do every type of arborist work. We also have four city and guild trained driveway restorers and two builders. we have 9 permanent employees we specialise in block paving and Indian stone patio’s etc. We work all over Manchester and Liverpool all of Yorkshire & Lancashire we are based in altrincham Manchester and and we can do everything garden related from tree surgery to building walls patios etc and fencing which is a speciality of ours. All quotations are free with no obligation and it’s always better to employ professionals like forevergreen than a man in a van get it done correctly the first time by a insurance backed professional company with a excellent track record all work guaranteed I have over 30 years of landscape gardening experience including flagging block paving and tarmac or concrete driveways etc Council approved contractor for 20 years City and guilds nptc level 2 chainsaw maintenance and cross cutting City and guilds npct level 2 in felling and Ariel cutting We have 1 million pounds worth of professional and indemnity insurance We are green registered all our tree and garden waste is recycled and re purposed ie chippings are Used around other gardens borders etc logs for heat and greenery is made into compost
Excellent job could not fault these guys were amazing I had 12 Leyandii trees at the bottom of my garden they took them down to the stump treated and removed every trace of them in the chipper and all in a couple of hours would highly recommend
'%20rx='20'%20/%3e%3cg%20fill='%23FFF'%3e%3cpath%20d='M29.376%2016.914c-.555%200-1.006.454-1.006%201.013v37.416c0%20.578.472%201.014%201.097%201.014h34.109a1.007%201.007%200%200%200%20.972-.83%201.012%201.012%200%200%200-.161-.76l-6.446-9.416c-.375-.548-.567-1.085-.586-1.642-.034-.977.516-1.952%201.402-2.483%204.8-2.878%205.808-7.575%205.808-11.009%200-7.335-5.925-13.303-13.207-13.303H29.376ZM63.594%2059.75H29.467c-2.505%200-4.467-1.936-4.467-4.408V17.927c0-2.43%201.963-4.408%204.376-4.408h21.982c9.14%200%2016.577%207.49%2016.577%2016.698%200%205.879-2.46%2010.687-6.944%2013.607l6.17%209.017c1.37%202.002.868%204.752-1.12%206.132a4.336%204.336%200%200%201-2.44.778h-.007Z'%20/%3e%3cpath%20d='M38.767%2027.797c0-.749.603-1.357%201.347-1.357h6.427c3.979%200%206.426%201.72%206.426%205.099v.123c0%203.132-2.325%205.098-6.365%205.098h-3.848l-3.985%203.998V36.76h-.002v-8.963'%20/%3e%3c/g%3e%3cpath%20fill='%23FFF'%20fill-rule='nonzero'%20d='M18.176%2069.2h2.156v3.878h3.976V69.2h2.156V79h-2.156v-3.934h-3.976V79h-2.156v-9.8Zm16.428%207.98c.43%200%20.826-.08%201.19-.238a2.72%202.72%200%200%200%20.931-.658c.257-.28.457-.604.602-.973a3.21%203.21%200%200%200%20.217-1.183V74.1c0-.42-.072-.817-.217-1.19-.145-.373-.35-.7-.616-.98a2.96%202.96%200%200%200-.945-.665%202.873%202.873%200%200%200-1.19-.245c-.439%200-.838.08-1.197.238-.36.159-.667.378-.924.658s-.457.604-.602.973a3.21%203.21%200%200%200-.217%201.183v.028c0%20.42.072.817.217%201.19a2.959%202.959%200%200%200%201.554%201.645c.36.163.758.245%201.197.245Zm-.028%201.988a5.343%205.343%200%200%201-2.086-.399%205.187%205.187%200%200%201-1.645-1.078%204.823%204.823%200%200%201-1.078-1.596%205.029%205.029%200%200%201-.385-1.967V74.1c0-.7.13-1.356.392-1.967a5.075%205.075%200%200%201%201.085-1.61%205.05%205.05%200%200%201%201.652-1.092%205.395%205.395%200%200%201%202.093-.399c.756%200%201.451.133%202.086.399a5.187%205.187%200%200%201%201.645%201.078c.462.453.821.985%201.078%201.596.257.611.385%201.267.385%201.967v.028c0%20.7-.13%201.356-.392%201.967a5.075%205.075%200%200%201-1.085%201.61%205.05%205.05%200%200%201-1.652%201.092%205.395%205.395%200%200%201-2.093.399Zm8.14-9.968h2.324l2.576%204.144%202.576-4.144h2.324V79h-2.142v-6.398l-2.758%204.186h-.056l-2.73-4.144V79h-2.114v-9.8Zm13.152%200h7.392v1.918h-5.25v1.988h4.62v1.918h-4.62v2.058h5.32V79h-7.462v-9.8Zm13.866%209.94a6.49%206.49%200%200%201-2.198-.385%205.817%205.817%200%200%201-1.96-1.183l1.274-1.526c.448.364.908.653%201.379.868.471.215.987.322%201.547.322.448%200%20.796-.082%201.043-.245a.771.771%200%200%200%20.371-.679v-.028a.85.85%200%200%200-.077-.371.778.778%200%200%200-.294-.301%203.079%203.079%200%200%200-.602-.28c-.257-.093-.59-.191-1.001-.294a12.201%2012.201%200%200%201-1.344-.406%203.787%203.787%200%200%201-1.022-.553%202.237%202.237%200%200%201-.651-.819c-.154-.327-.231-.733-.231-1.218v-.028c0-.448.084-.852.252-1.211.168-.36.404-.67.707-.931a3.183%203.183%200%200%201%201.085-.602c.42-.14.882-.21%201.386-.21a5.86%205.86%200%200%201%201.981.322%205.743%205.743%200%200%201%201.659.924l-1.12%201.624a7.1%207.1%200%200%200-1.288-.707%203.292%203.292%200%200%200-1.26-.259c-.42%200-.735.082-.945.245-.21.163-.315.366-.315.609v.028c0%20.159.03.296.091.413.06.117.17.222.329.315s.376.182.651.266c.275.084.623.182%201.043.294.495.13.936.278%201.323.441.387.163.714.36.98.588.266.229.467.497.602.805.135.308.203.677.203%201.106v.028c0%20.485-.089.917-.266%201.295a2.66%202.66%200%200%201-.742.952%203.353%203.353%200%200%201-1.134.588%204.924%204.924%200%200%201-1.456.203Z'%20/%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/svg%3e)
Get our app for homeowners
- Send messages and get notifications from tradespeople
- Add photos to get more accurate quotes
- View tradespeople's profiles