FREQUEnTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Here are some of my most commonly asked questions:
What is a strategy consultation?
A strategy consultation is a standalone service for homeowners who want expert design thinking without necessarily committing to a full design project. I spend around two hours at your property, talking through your space, your ideas and what you want from your garden. Afterwards you receive your personalised Garden Transformation Plan, a written document with a clear design direction, planting recommendations and practical next steps.
It's a great starting point if you feel stuck, overwhelmed, or simply want a professional perspective before deciding what to do next.
How is the consultation different from the full design service?
The strategy consultation results in a written plan. A detailed, considered document you can act on yourself, share with a landscaper, or use as the foundation for a full design project. The full design service goes further: site survey, scaled drawings, hand-drawn perspectives, materials and planting packs, contractor introductions and project management through the build.
Many clients start with a consultation and go on to full design. If you do, the £250 consultation fee is credited against the project.
I just want some advice on my garden, is that something you offer?
Yes. This is exactly what the strategy consultation is for. You don't need to be planning a full redesign to benefit from a fresh pair of expert eyes. Whether you're unsure about planting, struggling with a tricky area, or want to understand what your garden could become, a consultation gives you clarity and a written plan to take away.
Why do I need a designer?
In order to make the most out of your space it should be looked at in its entirety. Taking a new kitchen as an example, you wouldn’t build it without first planning what you want to use it for, what you want in it and how everything fits together, and your garden should be treated the same.
There are so many things that need to be considered; light, aspect, access, views, topography - to name a few, before the space can even be designed and this is where an experienced designer comes in to their own. The cost of hiring a designer as a percentage of the overall cost of building your garden is very small, yet the ramifications not having your garden professionally designed are huge.
Your outdoor space is not just a garden; it is a small, magical ecosystem, and ought to be designed as such. I approach every project with a view to maximising biodiversity and enriching soil health, to create a naturally resilient space that is perfected through thoughtful human design. This holistic method ensures your garden is not only beautiful and requires less maintenance, but is also a highly efficient extension of your home, intentionally designed to enhance your way of living and provide a truly immersive experience; a place to sit in, not just look at.
AI & Garden Design A few honest answers to questions I’m hearing more of…
Can't an AI app just design my garden for me?
It can generate something that looks like a garden design, and it will do so very quickly. What it cannot do is stand in your space, read the way the light moves across it at 4pm in October, notice that the soil is compacted clay despite what the postcode suggests, or understand that what you actually need is somewhere to breathe at the end of the day. Garden design is a physical, relational, and deeply site-specific discipline. The result of working with a person is different in kind, not just in quality.
I've seen AI-generated garden visuals that look really impressive. Is that what you do?
Those images are often beautiful, and almost entirely fictional. They show gardens that could exist anywhere, on any soil, in any climate, for any person. My work starts from the opposite direction: from your specific plot, your particular life, and what this garden needs to become for you to actually use and love it. The visual is the last thing; the thinking is everything that comes before it.
Is AI going to make garden designers redundant?
Not the kind of garden design I practise. Technology is good at replicating pattern and generating options at speed. It is not good at restraint; knowing what not to include. It cannot weigh up the ecological value of a hedgerow against your neighbour's objection to it. It has no feel for the difference between a garden that photographs well and one that works with you through every season. These are judgements built from training, experience, and genuine attention to the person in front of me. That is not automatable.
So where does AI fit in, do you use it at all?
Honestly? For some of the administrative sides of running a small business, things like working through website copy or drafting communications. Not for design. Never for design. The design work; the site visits, the plant knowledge, the spatial thinking, the decisions about what your garden actually needs, is entirely mine. There's no algorithm involved in what ends up on your plan.
How much will it cost to have my garden designed, built and planted by you?
Think of creating your beautiful garden as an investment. Having a well-maintained, well-built and thought-out garden can increase your house value up to 20%
AS A GUIDE, for a complete design and build of a small garden, you should plan to invest between £25,000 and £50,000, for a medium garden between £50,000 and £100,000 and a large garden, anything from £100,000 upwards.
For a total transformation, your investment allocation might look like this:
landscape contractor (build incl labour and materials) 70%
plants 12.5%
garden design 12.5%
furniture and accessories 5%
How long does the process last?
Usually the design will be ready to present within 4 weeks of the initial consultation.
The process of hiring a landscaper to completing the build could take anything from 3 to 9 months, depending on the complexity of the design and the availability of the landscaper.
Although the process can be sped up in certain circumstances, it is recommended to plan around year ahead to allow plenty of time for your garden to be designed, built and planted. So if you were looking for a new garden for next summer, you would be best advised to contract a garden designer no later than September/October time.
Can you design part of a garden or do it in stages?
You can totally break the design into stages or parts, for example, following an extension you might require only the design of a new patio and steps to integrate it into an already mature garden.
In some cases the garden can be designed as a whole and then broken down into stages for the actual build. This method works very well for those working to a tight budget or timeline.
