Think about What you Want - How to Create a Design Brief

So...What Do YOU Really Want???

Today we're going to look at creating a design brief for your garden design. It will enable you to focus on what you really want from your garden and how it can be put to best use to suit your needs.

Although it may be tempting to add lots of different elements to your garden, you will need to try to refrain from doing this. Some things may be unpractical and will just make the garden look cluttered - and quite frankly - UGLY!

Give yourself a mini interview - and take notes about the answers you give yourself. Do this in your head or at least make sure you are alone - otherwise your friends and family may become a little bit worried about your behaviour!

Ask yourself questions, not just about the garden, but about how you feel, what your hobbies, interests, likes and dislikes are. It will all help to build ideas and possibly themes for your garden.

Some important questions to consider are:

Who will mostly be using the garden, and at what times of the year?

Do you or your family go away for long periods at a time?

Are there any particular requirements for individuals who may use the garden ( disabilities, etc)?

Will children be using the garden? Now or in the future? Depending on their age you may consider play areas, storage for toys, football pitches. You will need to give careful consideration to safety in the garden. Be aware of toxic plants and consider whether water is absolutely necessary in your deign.

Do you, or family, have any pets that will be in the garden? Again, now or in the future? ( I have a rabbit that has the run of the garden and he can be a pest at times, eating all of my favourite plants and leaving the weeds!)

Do you have preference for a particular style? Maybe a formal or informal design? This could be influenced by looking at the house and its environment.

Also ask yourself what you like and dislike about your current garden. Look at what you would like to keep or definitely want to get rid of. You may find it useful to flick through magazines to get an idea of what design ideas you like. Visit friends gardens and copy their ideas if you like them.

Are you just wanting particular colours in your garden? Or have you favourite plants that you want to make a feature of?

How is your house decorated? Chances are that if you have a modern house then you will be happiest if your garden reflected this design. Similarly if your house is of a certain period, reflecting this outside will encourage a balance and unity between the house and the garden.

Do you want to have a lawn? It is labour intensive to keep one and if you go away a lot, you may find it a struggle to maintain. Think about all elements that you want to include in your design. Will they involve a lot of time to maintain them, or will someone else be doing the maintenance?How much storage do you require in your garden? You will need to allocate ample space for storage but try to blend it into your design so that it is not obtrusive.

Importantly, you will need to decide how much space you would like for seating. Are you a party animal who has lots of people over at a time, or do you want your garden to be a place of quiet solitude for you to escape to?

Start to consider what plants you would like to include. You do not, at this stage need to have an inclusive list, but have an idea of what type of planting you desire. The different types of planting should include screening, hedging, trees, structural shrubs, seasonal interest and ground cover. For ideas you can take a look through my archives at "Friday Plant Profiles" (I'll be adding more soon!). Include in your list, plants that you already have and want to keep. Add a note after each one to remind you that you already own them! Site requirements may dictate what type of plants you can have, sunny, shady, etc, so focus on plants preferring those requirements and you won't go far wrong.

Do you want to add art or sculptures to your garden? A well chosen piece of artwork can add lots to a design but you will need to make sure it practically fits your specification. Visit gardens that interest you and study which features, art, plants you like the most.

Seek inspiration everywhere!

Lastly...before you go absolutely crazy with ideas...try to consider a budget for all of these wonderful things you are planning to do! It's no good designing a masterpiece only for it to remain on paper for the rest of its life because you never quite manage to win the lottery. Be sensible with your ideas and budget and then you can actually make this design happen!

As you continue the design process, don't be scared to change you're mind. If, as your design develops, you decide that actually having an Olympic sized swimming pool isn't the best use of space, change the design and have a jacuzzi instead!

Take your time to really think about everything and you will come up with some really good ideas that we can then start to develop.