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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.
Linked builders Ltd is a family run buisness, we take great pride in our work. Our work team have experiance of over 20 years in the building trade; giving you great advice and workmanship. Please take a look at our profile! Many Thanks
Avoid these people at all costs, after charging me a ridiculous amount of money to carry out the job he scrimped and saved on everything doing a appalling job and now refuses to rectify his errors and to finish the job. Do NOT have anything to do with them.
We have a reputation for providing high quality, thoughtful, tidy and reliable work that always keeps the customer’s needs at the forefront. Drawing on many years of experience, we provide a tailor made service to meet your project requirements.
landscape gardening/property maintenance
Excellent work completed very efficiently. Polite and considerate folks who ensured the garden and surrounds were cleared up very well. I would highly recommend this company and would use them again.
M&M Landscape Gardens
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.
Peter worked very hard and has made a big difference to our garden. He was happy to discuss and go along with our ideas. He was very trustworthy.
LITA CONTRACTORS LTD We are a family owned construction company with over 10 years of successful commercial and residential building projects. Based in London, we help clients with all kinds of construction needs, with existing plans or brand-new designs and solutions. Some of our services include: - Ground work - Drainage - Basements - First Fix & Second Fix - Kitchen & Bathroom Fit Out - RC Frame & Steel Frame We are specialised in delivering reliable and best quality services that will last a generation.
We are phoenix property improvements we are a family run business that has been making property improvements since 1945. We specialise in driveways , patios , fencing , new gardens all done brand new or repairing and refreshing old ones . Other works include patio and drive way cleaning as well as roof cleaning. We also offer roof repairs such as chimney pointing ridge pointing ETC and even can supply and fit new roofs if required . We never leave a job until the customer is happy and has approved the finish Job. We aim to please .
These guys were really fab.. communication from Michael (the boss) was excellent and while only small-ish jobs the whole thing from quotation to completion in a week. Chris was great at keeping me updated as the work progressed and so reliable. If he said he’d arrive at 8 that’s when he arrived. Will be using these guys again. Thank you so much guys
AR Landscapers Ltd is a local business that always makes sure a satisfied customer experience is always maintained. A business with a friendly service and years of experience in the gardening industry.
New Dawn - New Garden - New Life
Great service from Carl and Tim. Very happy with the work completed and all done quickly in line with the quote. Would recommend and would happily use them again in future.
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 ????
Thank you, James, for the first class job you did in our small garden. We needed blocks removed and a new fence erected. James responded within minutes of me posting the job. He worked very hard in particularly warm weather and completed the work to a high standard with a minimum of disturbance. He was very responsive to any requests we had and we are very happy with the work he did. He is also very easy to talk to and we very much enjoyed his company. We look forward to working with him again.
I have been working on the construction market for 10 years. We are a reliable company. We always keep our promises and we always finish the work on time.
Excellent job and completed within a week. I gave my ideas for a revamp of my garden and Iosef helped with some additional suggestions. Him and his team were very respectful of me and my home and I am delighted with our new garden.
Treemendous Estate Care, is family run established 19 years. We offer high quality workmanship, a reliable service, competitive prices and good customer care. We can do all Garden, Fencing and Treework, as well as all Property Maintenance and Development.
Great job. They are really helpful and understanding.
We are a family run company which specializes in flat roofing, all chimney repairs Loose bricks, re-pointing work, roof repairs, lead work, leaking roofs, pitched roof's Replacing Chimney Caps Repairing flat roofs etc We have experience on private and commercial contracts, Learning avast experience in the roofing trade there are very few problems we haven't come across before and would be happy to give you a free, no obligation quote for fixing any problems big or small. We are fully insured for your peace of mind. We pride ourselves on our reputation. Most jobs we take before and after photos so you can see exactly what we are doing We pride ourselves on customer satisfaction For a free no obligation quotation and advice please feel free to call. Kind regards,Andrey We can provide the following services: Flat roof repairs and replacement GRP fibreglass roofing Firestone rubber roofing Guttering cleaned, repaired or replaced Ridges repointed Fascia’s, soffits & guttering Exterior painting All roof repairs Pitched roofing Roof leaks Repointing New roofs Moss removal All Chimney repairs Replacing broken tiles slates etc We are also skilled in services such as: Shed roofs re-felting guttering cleaning service. High pressure cleaning roofs walls, etc. All exterior maintenance Bricklaying Wall repairs Cleaning facias and soffits Andrey ,free quotation
Work was done efficiently and quickly, and to a high standard . We will definitely use this company again.
A friendly service you can trust to get the job done ((( liability insured )))
David and Chris removed some existing concrete steps that were crumbling and replaced with new, bricked and flagged complete with ramp for the bins. They completed the work on time and we are absolutely delighted with the result and would have no hesitation recommending them to anyone considering any such work in the future. They left the site clean and tidy and caused us no inconvenience whatsoever and completed within budget for which they were competitively priced.
Our priority is customer satisfaction. We pride ourselves in 18 years experience in all aspects of gardening and landscaping .
We are a Lancashire based company that offers garden care & landscaping offering the highest quality workmanship and our compatible prices!
Over 35 years of experience paving and landscaping across central Scotland, with 100% customer satisfaction.
Delighted!! From the initial detailed meeting to produce the quote, keeping in touch with anticipated start date, great communications throughout the job - to welcomed suggestions and enhancements as the job developed. A high quality end result exceeding all my expectations!! Utterly superb!
we are a construction and landscape company located in north London with over 10 years of experience in construction and gardening, and if you choose us, we will not disappoint you, thank you
Excellent work completed by Pin construction, communication was excellent throughout the paving and pergola work carried out. I have a wonderful garden thanks to Emile and his team. Everything was completed to a very high standard. Would highly recommend Pun Construction.
LA Groundworks and Landscaping offer a wide range of services which include paving, garden transformations, driveways, landscaping, stonemasonry, excavations, drainage, With over 40 years of experience we pride ourselves on working with our customers to ensure we as a team achieve and meet your specific requests. Please don’t hesitate to contact us today to discuss your project requirements.
Luke and his team were fantastic. The quote was reasonable, they arrived on time and completed the work within the agreed timeframe, even staying late into the evening and working by torchlight to get the job done. The garden looks great and we are very happy with the standard of work, as well as how tidy everything was left afterwards.
We are are a Building ,civil engineering and hard landscaping company .we are a family run business with 30 years experience and offer expertise in house ,garden and driveway designs no obligation free quotations.
Nick and the guys did a fantastic job, they were very fluid and moved with us when the job changed, offering expert advice.
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