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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.
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We offer a comprehensive range of building services to residential and commercial customer. With a professional team of experienced trades men such as plumbers,electricians,decorators and carpenters.We cover all aspects of work from start to finish.
Jan and David were immediately available to refurbish our downstairs toilet. Was very polite and did a lot of other stuffs for us as well. It's looks a look better than before and we are happy with it.
KP Solutions, from imagination to reality. We are a small family run business with over 20 years experience & pride ourself in giving 100% on all our work. Specialising from grounds work, garden renovation, drive ways, soffits facias, guttering, drainage, repointing and much more.
Job well done very nice and polite guys who came to do the job would book them again if I need them
We are general builders and groundwork contractors going the extra mile ,we have many satisfied customers more info can be supplied on request , check out my website all work has been completed by.uS. To a very high standard
MWE Builders removed our old garage, re built a new larger block construction garage, and we are very pleased with all of the work completed. Throughout the build we were kept informed of every stage, Matt was on site every day, even through some horrible wet weather. I would highly recommend MWE Builders, for price, quality, and friendliness. Thank you Matt, we appreciate all of the work you have done. Many Thanks Will and Wendy Kingswood Bristol
Need outstanding handyman services. I'm an experienced full time worker all around London who can promise excellent solutions for your home and business. I complete all my tasks at maximum effort, as It is my passion to assemble things whilst keeping high attention to detail and satisfaction of my customers. Love meeting different people and making their day.
Here at TJ Hughes landscaping and property maintenance we specialise in transforming your dream garden and house into reality With our new technology we can show you visuals of what your garden can look like right before it’s even been started.. We cover a huge area from Norfolk to London and everywhere in between We provide quality landscaping, from fresh lawns, fencing, decking and patios to full garden redesigns. TJ Hughes are highly dedicated to the landscaping trade, all members here at TJ Hughes ensure that our workmanship is to the highest of qualities. We have also ventured out as a team to property development, things like painting and repairs plastering and brick work Why choose us when there’s many companies out there? Well here at TJ Hughes we are a team built from highly experienced and skilled tradesmen that are trained to work safely and confidently within any work environment. Attention to detail and to have pride within the work throughout ensuring its completed on time to your exceptions and budget. Services TJ Hughes can guarantee : Friendly service Fully insured work Experienced and fully trained team Personal landscape designs Before and aftercare advice Free estimate Fast response Top quality Clean and tidy Don't stop and hesitate, give us an email or ring to book a date for your free estimate
Taurus Home And Garden
Garden Design
Taurus Home and Garden was launched in 2021 with the aim of providing our clients with an honest and reliable service, specialising in what we love most: landscaping and damp-proofing. Taurus is a Sussex based company where a clear vision for each project is shared among us, the contractors, andhomeowners. As well as landscaping and damp-proofing, we also undertake renovation projects on request – you only have to ask! Our goal is to become the go-to company for landscaping and damp-proofing work, and to share our vision of creating, improving, and protecting every space we have the opportunity to work upon. We aim to restore trust in contractors by delivering clear, well-planned, and expertly executed projects to our clients, providing full transparency throughout. We understand the anxieties many people experience when entrusting their home visions to others. Our transparent process, from planning to completion, is designed to help our clients rebuild that trust.
Taylors Building Contractors is your go-to solution for comprehensive property maintenance services. From routine upkeep to emergency repairs, here to ensure your space remains in optimal condition. With a focus on quality, reliability, and customer satisfaction, we take the hassle out of property care.we cover all traditional trades to plastering, carpentry, plumbing, and general building maintenance. Roofing, Brickwork,Fully insured, Credit & Debit cards excepted.
Steve and team did a fantastic job, fixing a few issues in the house for my tenant. Really good service and communication, and will ask him to do jobs in the future.
Kingpin groundwork’s & Gardens ?
We got there in the end! After a delay in completing all three jobs, everything was completed to my satisfaction. I will have another patio job later in the year and Mark and his team are top of the list for that.
We at Express Services painting-decorating-tiling and flooring provide quality professional and affordable work carried out and aim to keep the clients happy and satisfied with our work.
Hard working, honest and trustworthy. Good quality work and willing to go the extra mile.
The loft converstion the guys did was brilliant. We are very happy with the outcome but more than that we were happy with the communication and the flexibility to work around our requirements. Nothing was too difficult the workers were always polite and clean. Couldn't recommend more.
We have over 30 years experience in landscaping and general home improvements, no job to big or small, we provide free quotations and site visits. Customer satisfaction comes first for us every time. All of our work comes guaranteed, we use high quality products, machinery and all work is done in house. We don’t sub contract any work out.
Simple building solutions completed on time on budget by a professional.
Really pleased. He came out looked at job, like the fact he was able to give a price and time to do the job on the spot. He explained fully what he found and what was needed in layman’s term so I could understand. Will definitely use again.
Unicsconstruction it’s domestic and commercial landscaping company since 2007 includes fencing, patios, turfing, resin bound, all types of driveways and much more... We offer high quality services to our costumers from the start to the finish. Please call us for free/no obligation estimate.
Oak Contracts Ltd – Property Maintenance & Upgrades At Oak Contracts Ltd, we provide high-quality property maintenance and upgrade services for residential and commercial clients across Lanarkshire and Glasgow. With a skilled, reliable team and years of hands-on experience, we deliver exceptional workmanship that stands the test of time. Our wide range of services includes: Joinery – Kitchens, flooring, doors, media walls, and more. Roofing – New roofs, repairs, flat roofs, cleaning, coatings, and guttering. Landscaping – Full garden renovations, patios, artificial turf, sleeper walls, driveways, and more. Property Maintenance – General repairs, exterior upgrades, and preventative maintenance. Whether you’re looking to improve, repair, or completely transform your property, we offer a professional, friendly, and customer-focused service from start to finish.
If i could have given half a star i would have. I was told that my work would have taken 5 days to complete we are now into our 3rd week and it is no way near finished. They were turning up at lunch time and leaving at 5 or starting at 11 and finishing at 2.15. So we got fed up with it and told them to leave. Would definitely not recommend
Crystal Homes Improvements and Gardening Services, is one of the UK’s leading specialists in providing the best in interior and exterior design schemes for residential and investment properties. Over the last 15 years we have built our reputation on delivering high standards of excellence and unrivalled attention to customer care. Our team and design professionals can create the right design or work load to meet your needs and your budget.
Hansons Drives & Patios
Garden Design
Hansons drives and patios is a family run business with 10+ years of experience with our friendly team we make you dreams a reality We specialise in Driveways Patios Block paving Resin bond Porcelain Fencing Artificial Grass Garden landscaping Turfed lawns
Based in south Brent, we have been in the block paving and resurfacing tarmac driveways for over 30 years. During this time we gained a wealth of knowledge and expertise on which means we can offer our customers plenty of help when designing your driveway
Highly recommended, job was done as per request and work was completed to high standard. Very clean, tidy and professional - would use again
Excellent, efficient job and area was left incredibly clean and tidy at the end. Very good communication throughout the quoting and arranging process. Highly recommended.
Good, conscientious company. High quality work. Orders completed on time, professional service and honesty to their customers.
Work to retile the bathroom was scheduled promptly and delivered very well, on-time and in line with the quote. Wouldn't hesitate to use again. Tidied up and left things looking smart.
Tom Griffiths
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