My discomfort with most garden design is that there is such an element of fantasy. Regardless of climate, soil conditions, site and ability of the owner, a garden is shown with every plant tightly planted, in full flower and perfect condition. All gardeners know perfectly well that plants grow up, flower and fruit and die down again. Some are eaten by pests, blow over, swamp other plants, trail unattractively while they die down. They are all seasonal, and will not all be at their best all the time. I wish we could be realistic and show people what they can really expect in the long term, and how much effort they will have to put in.
I like that we have a program focussed on garden design, because all the others are about planting.
To be useful as well as entertaining I think they should have described sun position more - it was only mentioned that the small garden gets sun at the rear.
In terms of the budgets, I liked their being a more achievable one and a more grand one. I think to avoid putting people off they could have broken down that huge £33K a bit more - presumably the large chunk of it was in moving earth, removing the huge hedge and tree plus the porcelain patio. Otherwise it puts off a lot of people imo.
If I put £33K into my garden I’d expect it to be a jungle out there but they only put £3K into planting
I watched it last night and I quite liked it , its not a gardeners plant program more design forced which I am interested in , I like see how I imaged it would be and comparing it to someone else imagination.
Something I thought were impractical like the lawn ( expensive garden ) will be a pain in the ass to mow but can see why it was done. Disappointed they didn't try and rehome the monkey puzzle tree.
Think some people are being a little bit harsh on the budget garden, he done a lot of it himself and he wasn't a gardener / landscaper. Didn't like the wildflower meadow on it though , doesn't suit the garden and they are usually naff anyway in my opinion.
I suspect the designing maybe free for the client but all the labour / material etc will be paid by the client.
I like the trips to Tatton and the other one what has slipped my mind .
I like that it is focussed on design because all too often people lack the imagination, information or experience to realise a garden can be well designed.
What the chappy did with that small, narrow suburban garden was really very effective and should/could have inspired loads of people with similar plots. Seems to me we get quite a lot of questions about what to do with that kind of garden, both old and new build.
As for the expensive garden, I don't think showing a big machine hoiking out conifers would have added anything to our fount of gardening knowledge but seeing the why and the how of all those screens and seating areas should have provided food for though to some. Every bit of that garden became usable which has to be good.
Not to my taste but a heap better than what was there before and an interesting design process.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I wish that they paid more attention to the specifics of the choices made when selecting plants to compliment the hard landscaping. There was no discussion about soil type, plant maintenance or the amount of time and effort required to keep it looking good. All these garden makeovers I always want to back a year later and see if it looks as nice.
I'd like them to revisit the garden makeovers in one or 5 or 10 years too, but I bet many of them don't get looked after very well. I'd also like more details on the plants and how-tos but I guess that's not what they're aiming for. A £25,000 garden is pure fantasy land for most people. The other one was much more realistic and could have done with more of the detail of the building, planting etc, but they seemed to me to focus more on the expensive one.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
I like seeing what designers come up with but also would have liked to know the plant choices. Too much chat and not enough sweat in that programme. Not enough time filming the planting to recognise more than a few. I liked both the realised designs but slippy decking and very touchy flat surfaces in the garden are a no from me. Did you see the muddy footprints appear and disappear from the filming of the finished garden?
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To be useful as well as entertaining I think they should have described sun position more - it was only mentioned that the small garden gets sun at the rear.
In terms of the budgets, I liked their being a more achievable one and a more grand one. I think to avoid putting people off they could have broken down that huge £33K a bit more - presumably the large chunk of it was in moving earth, removing the huge hedge and tree plus the porcelain patio. Otherwise it puts off a lot of people imo.
If I put £33K into my garden I’d expect it to be a jungle out there but they only put £3K into planting
BBC iPlayer only works in the UK
Something I thought were impractical like the lawn ( expensive garden ) will be a pain in the ass to mow but can see why it was done. Disappointed they didn't try and rehome the monkey puzzle tree.
Think some people are being a little bit harsh on the budget garden, he done a lot of it himself and he wasn't a gardener / landscaper. Didn't like the wildflower meadow on it though , doesn't suit the garden and they are usually naff anyway in my opinion.
I suspect the designing maybe free for the client but all the labour / material etc will be paid by the client.
I like the trips to Tatton and the other one what has slipped my mind .
What the chappy did with that small, narrow suburban garden was really very effective and should/could have inspired loads of people with similar plots. Seems to me we get quite a lot of questions about what to do with that kind of garden, both old and new build.
As for the expensive garden, I don't think showing a big machine hoiking out conifers would have added anything to our fount of gardening knowledge but seeing the why and the how of all those screens and seating areas should have provided food for though to some. Every bit of that garden became usable which has to be good.
Not to my taste but a heap better than what was there before and an interesting design process.
All these garden makeovers I always want to back a year later and see if it looks as nice.