How to plan a garden landscape

The key to creating a successful garden design is all in the detail. ‘We gather as much information as possible about our clients and the garden in the beginning so that we can build a picture,’ explains Mark Latchford, Director of Landscape Design at architecture, interior design and landscape design studio HollandGreen.

‘We ask our clients questions about their lifestyle and how they want to use their garden, as well as carrying out a site analysis such as finding out where the sun sets and where the best views are. I normally take a couple of hours to walk around the garden, looking at the position of the house, where there are trees and any overlooked views, the topography of the site and analysing the surrounding landscape. I often compare the design to a fog - the more questions you ask and the more information you gain, then the fog starts to clear and the picture forms itself. When you look around, you can make some assumptions - you know if it’s a Georgian listed house, for example, that the clients will likely not want a super contemporary style garden.’

A massing plan is then created that focuses on the two or three areas in the garden where the client is going to spend the most time, so where the work will be concentrated and the budget spent. In the massing plan, squares and circles represent key areas such as seating and dining zones and the swimming pool, and these can be moved around for optimum positioning. ‘For instance, the location of a swimming pool requires careful consideration as it needs to be where there is little leaf fall and where there is some sun for when you’re sitting by the pool,’ explains Mark. 

Next comes the development of moodboards and these will include any images that the client likes or is inspired by. ‘I’ll deliberately add in something quite different, a wildcard, to gauge information from the clients,’ says Mark. ‘Quite often one of the clients will actually like it - you want to tick everyone’s boxes not just one person.’ The moodboards are honed to narrow down choices further and may include more specific images such as an oak-framed pool house or a more contemporary alternative.

There are, of course, sometimes the inevitable differences in taste. ‘If it’s a couple, often one will like one thing and the other will like something completely different, so you have to try and meet in the middle, and that’s when the design becomes really bespoke because you’re making it quite personal to them with elements of both personalities. The best designs come together when you’re trying to meet the brief but also incorporate the individual personalities of the couple,’ explains Mark.

Budgets are a vital part of the equation and costs will reflect both the materials used and the labour involved. The design of the garden is divided into high, medium and low intervention. ‘High intervention is the hard landscaping such as walls and paving areas that are quite labour intensive and include relatively high cost materials. Medium intervention are areas such as gravel and decking that are quite large but don’t have to be full stone. Then there’s low intervention, which is the soft landscaping. The aim is to focus on the main areas where you’re going to spend a lot of time and where your budget should be directed, then have open areas that are softer and the client’s investment won’t be as concentrated,’ explains Mark.

Stone is a major element of hard landscaping and predominantly makes up paving, gravel pathways and stone walling. Decisions about which stone to use depends on the client’s colour tone preference and whether they like a sawn or riven look, with the pros and cons of the varieties of stone explained. The choices are narrowed down before ordering samples with two or three selections being the optimum. ‘A small piece of stone in a showroom looks very different to outside, so we get a large slab of stone and position it where it’s going to go in the garden to make a really informed decision,’ says Mark. Limestone and sandstone, such as those provided by Artisans of Devizes, are the main stones used in gardens with limestone tending to be popular for country homes on recent projects. ‘I’m a big advocate of natural stone and 99 per cent of the time I will suggest natural stone - I find it a lot more beautiful. It feels better underfoot than porcelain, and it’s more sustainable.’ 

Introducing detail to define a seating area on a patio - such as a herringbone design at the centre of larger paved area that echoes an outdoor rug on a patio - makes it more special and bespoke to the clients and the property. ‘It’s important not just to have one stone en masse; it’s really nice to break it up,’ advises Mark. ‘Having pockets of planting in the paving ensures there’s greenery tumbling over the stone, which is really nice for lovely scents and movement, and brings nature closer to where you will be sitting. However, do pick the right plants for the area to avoid staining, so avoid fruit trees, and also think about possible red wine spills in dining areas. I explain to clients that stone will need some maintenance such as jet-washing and often a sealant added to ensure it looks pristine and clean and lasts for years to come.’