After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

"Derek" wrote in message ...

After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.


Derek if you asked a builder to 'Build me a house', he would ask you how
many bedrooms etc etc etc etc. Well it's the same with a garden, how big/
what do you want it for? How do you want it to look? What is the soil like?
Where are you? Do you want a labour saving garden? Does it face North,
South, East or West? Children? Ornamental? Veg patch?

Get the gist?

Mike

On 2013-08-24 08:16:49 +0100, Derek said:

After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

The first thing is to consider how you're going to use the garden.
Where do you want an eating-out/evening drink area? Do you need a space
for a washing line, a compost heap, a shed, a veg plot, children's play
area, dog compound? Do you want a paved terrace right outside a door
or french windows? Do you like island beds or would you prefer to
stick to borders that have a wavy edge but make lawn mowing easy?
Interesting gardens are usually those you can't see in one glance, so
you could consider hedges that break the garden up into separate spaces
and if you want roses and have the space, they're usually better grown
in their own rose garden so that, in winter you don't see a lot of bare
sticks but in summer you walk down the garden to visit them and sit on
a thoughtfully placed bench. Do you have a view you want to 'frame'
with tree or shrub planting, or is there a 'borrowed' landscape you
want to incorporate into your own garden? As to books, there are so
many that, imo, it's impossible to recommend one and so much depends on
your preferred style - cottage, parterres, greensward, meadow? If you
have a lot of space, would you like an area that is a cutting garden,
just providing flowers for the house? I think one of the best ways of
getting an idea of where to start is by visiting other gardens, though
it's getting late in the year for that. But if nothing else, you may
well find what you don't want. And finally, it may be worth bearing in
mind that if you expect to be in this house for a long time, you might
want to look at it from the point of being relatively easy maintenance
later.
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk

Well how about that :-)

I got it pretty right in my posting didn't I?

Mike



"Sacha" wrote in message ...

On 2013-08-24 08:16:49 +0100, Derek said:

After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

The first thing is to consider how you're going to use the garden.
Where do you want an eating-out/evening drink area? Do you need a space
for a washing line, a compost heap, a shed, a veg plot, children's play
area, dog compound? Do you want a paved terrace right outside a door
or french windows? Do you like island beds or would you prefer to
stick to borders that have a wavy edge but make lawn mowing easy?
Interesting gardens are usually those you can't see in one glance, so
you could consider hedges that break the garden up into separate spaces
and if you want roses and have the space, they're usually better grown
in their own rose garden so that, in winter you don't see a lot of bare
sticks but in summer you walk down the garden to visit them and sit on
a thoughtfully placed bench. Do you have a view you want to 'frame'
with tree or shrub planting, or is there a 'borrowed' landscape you
want to incorporate into your own garden? As to books, there are so
many that, imo, it's impossible to recommend one and so much depends on
your preferred style - cottage, parterres, greensward, meadow? If you
have a lot of space, would you like an area that is a cutting garden,
just providing flowers for the house? I think one of the best ways of
getting an idea of where to start is by visiting other gardens, though
it's getting late in the year for that. But if nothing else, you may
well find what you don't want. And finally, it may be worth bearing in
mind that if you expect to be in this house for a long time, you might
want to look at it from the point of being relatively easy maintenance
later.
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk

"Derek" wrote in message
...
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

Leave the books on the shelves, unless you are planning to enter it for
competitions, its your garden, make it how you think it looks good, its
common sense to organize things so you can get about.

People would think a lot less of designed gardens if they were allowed to
see them over a 12 month period instead of a few days at a show.

I now get irritated to the point I just can not watch garden programs at
all, I have lost track of the number of truly daft designs I have seen of
late, uncuttable grass, beautiful mirror ponds and shiny surfaces (for the
gardens that never have leaves fall, dust or rain) Gardens that only would
look good in June, wonderful cloud pruned hedges with no means of getting at
them to cut them, this list is endless.

I am sure yours will be lovely and betters still you will have enjoyed doing
it

--
Charlie, Gardening in Cornwall
Holders of National Collections of Clematis viticella
and Lapageria rosea cvs
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk

On 24/08/2013 08:16, Derek wrote:
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.


You asked about books, not how to design your garden
I would go to your local library and get out books with plenty of
pictures of garden, then make notes of things you like.
By using the library you can go through loads of books, then if you find
a book you really like then decide if you want to buy it.
But don't be in a rush, if it's an old garden you might find some real
treasures pop up in their own time, If it's a new build then you need to
get the soil into condition and find out if the drainage is good first,
nothing worse than finding out to late that you have a patch with no
drainage and everything getting waterlogged.
David @ a dull and blustery side of Swansea Bay

On 24/08/2013 08:16, Derek wrote:
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

Why do you need /any/ book on garden design? As you have had a garden
for years, even though it's small you must know at least the basics for
growing plants - soil type, location, direction, shading, etc. Unless
you are going to have hardly any plants and rely on "hard" features,
then that's all that really matters (and then I would argue that you
don't have a garden at all, just a courtyard with some plants).

I am fortunate enough to be completely uninterested in garden design, or
as I prefer to call it, "what other people think a garden should look
like". If you want to paint your fences orange with purple polka dots
because you like them that way, just go ahead and do it. If you want
gnomes, put them in.

Finally, just be aware that "a triumph of design over function" is all
too common these days in so many areas; garden design is just one of
them. Just consider what you want your garden for, and then you can
"design" it so that it remains functional, too.

--

Jeff

On 24/08/2013 10:58, David Hill wrote:
On 24/08/2013 08:16, Derek wrote:
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.


You asked about books, not how to design your garden
I would go to your local library and get out books with plenty of
pictures of garden, then make notes of things you like.
By using the library you can go through loads of books, then if you find
a book you really like then decide if you want to buy it.
But don't be in a rush, if it's an old garden you might find some real
treasures pop up in their own time, If it's a new build then you need to
get the soil into condition and find out if the drainage is good first,
nothing worse than finding out to late that you have a patch with no
drainage and everything getting waterlogged.
David @ a dull and blustery side of Swansea Bay

Just wondering, have you googled Garden designs lots of good pictures
and sites such as http://www.creativelandscapes.co.uk/default.asp

In article ,
says...

After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

Most garden design writers have personal ideas and tastes on what
makes a good garden, which leave a recognisable stamp on every garden
they make (even for other people) and their books usually reflect that.
Without any hint of what you might need/like/reject in your garden plan
it's impossible to guess which designer's books might appeal to you.

They tend to be heavily illustrated so expensive, and you certainly
don't want to lash out at Amazon on a stranger's recommendation then
find it has no appeal to you. So expensive, that very often library
services do not purchase copies for every branch, but share one round
the county. I suggest you borrow whatever's available in your local
library catalogue lists and use those to get an idea of what is
possible, what appeals (or not) etc. Also, look in the library (or
friends' bookshelves) for coffee-table books which while not about
design, showcase dozens of mature garden. Spend a few hours in
Waterstones where looking through their books is encouraged, no
pressure to buy. By doing your own wide sweep you'll get a better idea
of which design ideas are sympathetic to your tastes... and whatever
unalterable local conditions will inevitably influence the garden you
make.

Janet.

In article ,
Janet wrote:
In article ,
says...

After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

Most garden design writers have personal ideas and tastes on what
makes a good garden, which leave a recognisable stamp on every garden
they make (even for other people) and their books usually reflect that.
Without any hint of what you might need/like/reject in your garden plan
it's impossible to guess which designer's books might appeal to you.

What always annoys me is the monomania and relentless positivity
of so much of modern 'information' - and not just in this area.
I fairly often get criticised for spending more time on what may
go wrong and how to avoid that in my IT courses than in telling
people what to do. But people who have real problems to solve
often thank me for it! This is an example. What is most often
wanted is:

What options are possible
What plausible options will NOT work
What problems may arise if you do X
What to check for whether X is feasible

And so on. To take one simple and common example, there are a
lot of plants that need no pruning. What you need to know is
whether they will eventually get out of hand in a small garden
and, if so, whether they can be cut back hard. It can be damn
hard to find out - e.g. for the clematis or honeysuckles, all
of which have some that can be cut back hard and some that can't.

Another one is Abies koreana - a lovely tree, that grows at c. 6"
a year. It CAN have its lower branches removed to reduce its
dominance widthwise but, when it gets too high/big, all that can
be done is to grub it up. How many books say that?


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 2013-08-24 09:44:33 +0000, Charlie Pridham said:

"Derek" wrote in message
...
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

Leave the books on the shelves, unless you are planning to enter it for
competitions, its your garden, make it how you think it looks good, its
common sense to organize things so you can get about.

People would think a lot less of designed gardens if they were allowed
to see them over a 12 month period instead of a few days at a show.

I now get irritated to the point I just can not watch garden programs
at all, I have lost track of the number of truly daft designs I have
seen of late, uncuttable grass, beautiful mirror ponds and shiny
surfaces (for the gardens that never have leaves fall, dust or rain)
Gardens that only would look good in June, wonderful cloud pruned
hedges with no means of getting at them to cut them, this list is
endless.

I am sure yours will be lovely and betters still you will have enjoyed doing it

Charlie, it's definitely time you and Liz came over! I cannot count the
times I've heard Ray look at garden 'designs' and make these comments.
Plants so close together that he knows that particular type will get
mildew plants looking fabulous for two weeks then - bang, over and not
a bloom in sight. Mirrors in the garden to make it look bigger -
delightful - covered in bird poop, mildew and slime - great idea! So
to Derek, I suppose the answer is, choose the plants you like in the
shape you want and take it slowly. Above all, take it slowly. 'Instant'
gardens really do not happen in real life!
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon

You are so right. Our gardens have taken over 20 years to come to a position
whereby we can open to the public on Charity Fund raising days.


Mike



"sacha" wrote in message ...

On 2013-08-24 09:44:33 +0000, Charlie Pridham said:

"Derek" wrote in message
...
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.

Leave the books on the shelves, unless you are planning to enter it for
competitions, its your garden, make it how you think it looks good, its
common sense to organize things so you can get about.

People would think a lot less of designed gardens if they were allowed to
see them over a 12 month period instead of a few days at a show.

I now get irritated to the point I just can not watch garden programs at
all, I have lost track of the number of truly daft designs I have seen of
late, uncuttable grass, beautiful mirror ponds and shiny surfaces (for the
gardens that never have leaves fall, dust or rain) Gardens that only would
look good in June, wonderful cloud pruned hedges with no means of getting
at them to cut them, this list is endless.

I am sure yours will be lovely and betters still you will have enjoyed
doing it

Charlie, it's definitely time you and Liz came over! I cannot count the
times I've heard Ray look at garden 'designs' and make these comments.
Plants so close together that he knows that particular type will get
mildew plants looking fabulous for two weeks then - bang, over and not
a bloom in sight. Mirrors in the garden to make it look bigger -
delightful - covered in bird poop, mildew and slime - great idea! So
to Derek, I suppose the answer is, choose the plants you like in the
shape you want and take it slowly. Above all, take it slowly. 'Instant'
gardens really do not happen in real life!
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon

On 2013-08-24 11:09:29 +0100, David Hill said:

On 24/08/2013 10:58, David Hill wrote:
On 24/08/2013 08:16, Derek wrote:
After many years with a small garden I now have a very large blank
canvas to keep me occupied. At the moment, its featureless. Can anyone
suggest a good book on Garden Design.


You asked about books, not how to design your garden
I would go to your local library and get out books with plenty of
pictures of garden, then make notes of things you like.
By using the library you can go through loads of books, then if you find
a book you really like then decide if you want to buy it.
But don't be in a rush, if it's an old garden you might find some real
treasures pop up in their own time, If it's a new build then you need to
get the soil into condition and find out if the drainage is good first,
nothing worse than finding out to late that you have a patch with no
drainage and everything getting waterlogged.
David @ a dull and blustery side of Swansea Bay

Just wondering, have you googled Garden designs lots of good pictures
and sites such as http://www.creativelandscapes.co.uk/default.asp

I like the work of Tom Hoblyn and Jo Thompson. They're quite 'relaxed'
and could be adapted to most peoples' use, imo. But it's such a
subjective thing when all's said and done.
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk

On Sat, 24 Aug 2013 08:16:49 +0100, Derek
wrote:

After many years with a small garden

Thanks for so many replies, A little more info, and a rely to some
questions/

Not a new garden, size 100m by 15m south facing, overlooking fields at
far end, I will be having a Greenhouse veg plot. multiple compost
bins and a polytunnel. No children, No Gnomes, no Washing lines, no
Roses, and I plan to be there until I am chucked on the compost heap
(but hopefully that will be in thirty plus years, )

Veg plot and hard landscape I can sort out, but the flower beds, (lots
of grasses?) lawn and trees, I will take inspiration from books.

Thanks

PS Will be finding space for my 100+ varieties of fuchsia!

Thanks for the latest info Derek.

Would add I like your multiple compost bins. We have two and that is not
enough when you garden a lot. The trouble is that our gardens do not permit
bigger bins, but what I have done is to store the ready compost in a 1 tonne
green builder bag. Also, as near as possible, everything goes through the
shredder, we have superb neighbours and even save them the trouble of taking
their stuff up the tip, we have their garden refuse for shredding. They are
not gardeners!!

As for shredders, I have a Bosch and it is superb. 3 spare blades which I
re-sharpen myself and never let them get too blunt.

Mike



"Derek" wrote in message ...

On Sat, 24 Aug 2013 08:16:49 +0100, Derek
wrote:

After many years with a small garden

Thanks for so many replies, A little more info, and a rely to some
questions/

Not a new garden, size 100m by 15m south facing, overlooking fields at
far end, I will be having a Greenhouse veg plot. multiple compost
bins and a polytunnel. No children, No Gnomes, no Washing lines, no
Roses, and I plan to be there until I am chucked on the compost heap
(but hopefully that will be in thirty plus years, )

Veg plot and hard landscape I can sort out, but the flower beds, (lots
of grasses?) lawn and trees, I will take inspiration from books.

Thanks

PS Will be finding space for my 100+ varieties of fuchsia!