With the right tips, garden planning and design becomes effortless. Learn how to prepare, plant and maintain your garden, and create a wildlife-friendly, sustainable garden you can enjoy all year round.
Unlock the potential of your garden with innovative design concepts and sustainable practices. Discover how to select the perfect plants, incorporate creative elements, and create a garden that reflects your personal style.
To keep your garden well-maintained, it's important to regularly identify and remove weeds, fertilise the garden properly, and use soil improvement techniques for optimal growth.
There are many different types of garden, and you should make your choice carefully, considering your own preferences and how you will use the space in future. How much time can or will you invest into it? Are you happy with only using your garden during certain seasons or do you want a year-round garden? Planning a garden that features vegetables, decorative beds and fruit trees means more long-term upkeep than a large lawn with a few small beds.
If you're designing a garden from scratch, costs are likely to be a limiting factor. And don’t forget that a garden is a long-term project which needs to be maintained every year. You might find the best option is to plant a small area of garden to start with, while planning to later expand the beds, add a pond or vegetable patch – after all, just like nature itself, gardens are always changing.
Whether you do the whole garden at once or let the design evolve it over time, think about what you will use different areas for. What is already there on the plot? How can you make the best of it? For example, a rock garden is a low-maintenance option where you can grow wonderful alpine plants that thrive even in dry, poorly nourished soil. But if you want to grow herbs, soil condition is key so you may need to add topsoil or enrichment.
The easiest way to start planning and designing your garden is to write all your garden ideas down on paper. A sketch is also a great way to map out your garden layout. Draw the different areas and list which plants you want to grow in future. You should also think about the general growing conditions in your space: when and where is it sunny or in shade? When you start actually planting, all the information you need is in your sketch.
With your design decided, you can get outside and start your garden. Make sure you have the tools and equipment you need. Begin by refining the garden layout: dig beds, lay paths, plant trees, and perhaps build a pond. If you’re aiming for a productive vegetable garden but lack experience, start with herb beds and fruit bushes. Don’t forget to include a path to make spending time in your garden even more delightful.
STIHL pro tip:
To save yourself some work and delight your local bees, you can add areas of low-maintenance wildflower meadow to your garden. All that’s needed is a spot with rather thin soil and a suitable seed mix that you can find in any specialist store. It won’t be long before the bees are visiting.
