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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.
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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.
Located in Glasgow, we are a small, yet well-established, family-run business with over 15 years of experience in building and home maintenance. Our commitment to detail, service quality, reliability, and value for money sets us apart. We have earned an excellent reputation through word-of-mouth recommendations, thanks to our consistently high standards of work. Here's why you should consider choosing us: 1. Exceptional Workmanship: Our team takes pride in delivering work of the highest quality, ensuring every project meets or exceeds your expectations. 2. Comprehensive Guarantee: We stand behind our work and provide a comprehensive guarantee to give you peace of mind. 3. Diverse Trades: Our expertise covers various trades, allowing us to handle all aspects of your building and maintenance needs. 4. Competitive Pricing: We offer competitive prices without compromising the quality of our service, ensuring you get the best value for your investment. 5. Free, No-Obligation Quote: Contact us today to receive a free quote, with no obligation attached. At The Guy of all Trades LTD, we are dedicated to providing exceptional services. We look forward to the opportunity to work with you and meet your building and maintenance requirements. Contact us today to get started !
Great job, thorough efficient and clean. Would be happy to book again for another job
Pilot Home improvements is a family owned, customer driven company. Quality and workmanship assured as all our Engineers and Fitters are experienced in their field. With over 15 years of trade experience and recommendations from our customers, our pricing structure is very competitive and we will assist you in making the right choice of design for your bathroom which will be exclusive to you. See our reviews online.
Barbara came out to give us a quote. She was very friendly and helpful. We had the quote within 3 days. Now waiting for insurance to approve so we can get on with the work.
We are a family run business with over 15 years in the building trade. From joiners, plumbers, electricians, painting/decorators, landscapers and plasterers we have it all. We take great pride in our work and customer care is priority. We do apply an out of hours charge after 6pm, weekends and bank holidays.
Pm building & landscapers ,with 35 years building experience we cover all aspects of building works to be carried out ,extensions ,conversions ,garages ,porches brickwork .stonework ,retainers and much more ,ins work carried out .
RAR offer a full hard landscaping, groundwork and building service, including but not restricted too, ~ Patios ~ Paths ~ Drive ways ~ Fencing ~ Turf ~ Bespoke timber structures ~ Sleeper work ~ Ponds ~ Small and medium sized building jobs ~ Garden clearance Specialising in low maintenance gardens. with over 20yrs experience in these sectors I offer high quality and am happy to chat through what is required.
Im Dannys gardening service a gardening company with 14 years experience in gardening and tree work i specialise in giving your garden the best work possible im reliable hard working and aim to please i give all my work 110% of my attention i will guarantee to beat any given quote if it’s in your garden we do it find us on yell or our website dgsgardenservice
Reliable and efficient. The garden is looking the best it's looked for a long time. Thank you Dan, I have already recommended you.
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At Cymraeg Construction, building work has been at the heart of our family for generations with skills, knowledge and training passed on from one to another, even in the day to day running of the business we can call upon over 40 years experience from my father who is an integral part of the company and has made us what we are today with a passion for quality that shines through on every job we undertake. Covering all of South Wales, you can be sure to rely on us to undertake any project you may have from conception to completion, we can take care of all aspects of the build including planning and skilled tradesmen in all trades, let us deal with all the complications and timings as we project manage the process to ensure everything is done correctly and to schedule all while keeping you informed every step of the way. Please feel free to contact us for a free no obligation estimate on any work you may have. Cymraeg Construction.
Gareth and his team were amazing and professional throughout. He was very knowledgable regarding the options available to us. All work was completed quickly and efficiently. Gareth kept in contact with us throughout our garage renovation and even kept in touch afterwards to check everything was ok for the fitment of the garage door. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Gareth and his team and would definitely use them again for any future building work on my home. Great job completed.
WW Property Maintenance provide all types of maintenance and landscaping services through out Herts, Beds & Bucks. We're fully insured and high experienced landscapers and tree surgeons. Our rates are affordable.
I will be using Walter again, and I highly recomend him to others. His work was of a high standard, he was a good comunicator and he went out of his way to ensure I was happy with everything he had done. Alison Jenkins, MK19
MH Interiors for all your interior building works in the Eastmidlands.
First class job looks great
Over 20 years' experience High standards of workmanship Fully qualified team of builders and joiners Associated with the Apprenticeship scheme of the Construction Industry Training Board Competitive pricing Free, no obligation quotation
Beautiful carpentry work , attention to detail is amazing, hes gone the extra mile to help us transform our home. Would recommend for all joinery work doors ,door frames, bannister, skirting, loft hatch, flooring and plastering. Very good price also. Very approachable with better ideas. Have recommended Tom to everyone I know!.
Williams landscapes is family run landscape gardening company based in bristol. We also provide a garden maintenance service and we specialise in fencing, tree work and turfing. We cater for gardens of all shapes, styles and for all budgets.
Brillaint job. Made the garden look perfect and cleaned my patio for no extra cost. Thank you
I am a small family run business. My business was established in 2014. I would describe myself as friendly, reliable and reasonably priced. most of my work comes through recommendations.
Offering a wealth of property maintenance knowledge ranging from roofing to silicone installation. Fully trained in bricklaying/painting & decorating/project management among other things. All certification and insurance documents available if requested. I’m a fully established builder with a methodical attention to detail. I have a good imagination when it comes to designing landscapes or renovating inside of a property. I am literate in reading and running builds from architects drawings and can lay any type of drainage from engineers instructions.
A trustworthy and reliable gentleman, and a highly experienced builder who has also helped me with house repairs
Full property renovations, extensions, loft conversions, outbuildings & more.
Andre and team did a great job with the shed /summerhouse construction, and were very accommodating with the request to build it at short notice ( (within 5 days) and alter the layout of the building to meet our requirements. Also were very friendly and professional. Reasonably priced too. Would recommend.
Taylor Made Gardens is a family run, friendly company. All jobs taylor made to suit at reasonable prices. free no obligation quotes. fast and Efficient. all work guaranteed. Fully Insured
So very pleased with the 35 metre feather board fence installed by Taylor Made Gardens. Will certainly use them again. Roger was easy to get along with and worked steadily with total attention to quality. The new fence looks great. Thanks.
Sf-gardenscapes is a professional landscape and gardening company weve been In the trade for 25 years. In this time we have worked hard to build a good reputation by giving expert services and care for our clients .our work is produced at the highest standard we cover all areas from fresh design and full build to all landscape projects large and small , i am a horticulturist and believe when im maintaining your garden i should be professionally looked after trying to keep plants healthy and bring in nature i know this is not always achievable and sometimes its just about keeping everything clean tidy a looking nice , both modern design and natural planting and creative ideas can bring harmony and bold standout fresh designs clean modern landscaping , my work has featured in magazines for innovated ideas , i work on the smallest garden to large estate management and manor houses , as long as im creating something for a client to enjoy , we specialize in ,decking , paving , bespoke seating areas , pergolas , fencing , turfing ,planting and gardening , one off makeovers to long term rejuvenation and maintenance
Do not use this company. Sol French came and quoted, took £800 up front but didn’t complete the work. The work that was done had to be entirely redone by another contractor. Constant stream of excuses and refusing to refund the money.
We are a family run business experienced in all garden projects and garden design.
We provide all types of Construction work: New Build Houses Property Renovation Garage, Loft and Barn Conversions All work is done to the highest standard
Dave and Keith did a fantastic job on our extension and garage conversion. All work was completed at the agreed costs and to a high standard. Nice guys to work with, highly recommended.
IMD&G is a growing company that we started in the U.K.. We offer amazing gardening services, with professionals, all our staff are competent and trained. We can offer our services for anything you require, gardening wise. If you would like to use our services please feel free to exept the quotes and leave it on me
Great communication. After photos show hard work. Great results. Would recommend.
we are a company offering all building works, extensions, lofts, bespoke bathrooms and kitchens to suite your taste. We use only the highest quality products and materials for your job. Only the best design, materials and price will always be provided.
John Makkar and his incredible team have made the experience of renovating our whole 5 bedroomed house an absolute pleasure ! The enthusiasm and professionalism is outstanding as well as the quality of work and his excellent communication. I can’t rate John and the team highly enough! His ideas are brilliant and creative- always a problem solver and he deeply cares. Thank you so much John and the team!
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