Let’s face it: outdoors is the new indoors. With a bit of imagination and planning you can create the perfect space in your garden for your needs.

What do you want from your garden?  Are you a budding gardener craving the buzz and scent of nature all around?  Are you an entertainer seeking decking, furniture, and mood lighting for your social gatherings?  Are you looking to create a safe oasis in which your children can play?  Take note of these tips and make your garden work for you.

Visualisation

If you would like to design the garden on your own, take a walk around.  Have a look at the space and think about what would work best.  Make some rough sketches.  Depending on size, think about all of the different ‘zones’ you can have, e.g. an eating area, a play area, relaxation, maintenance, and so on.

Don’t forget to add in domestic matters such where the rubbish bins will go, where the compost pile will be located and even where you might want to dry the clothes. Would you like a lush lawn? What sort of plants do you want? What about a water feature? Will you have any dogs or cats in your garden? Are you going to grow fruit, vegetables, or herbs? Do you want to include an entertaining area?  Take a look at some gardens online for inspiration, such as the ones featured on My Ideal Garden.

Once you have some inspiration of how you would like to design your garden, you’ll need to decide on your budget.  Take a trip down to your local gardening centre and look at the prices of the different options there to get an idea of how much you will need to spend on your new garden design.

Be realistic when choosing a garden style for you. Start by thinking about the practical considerations – for instance, it’s not exactly wise to have your most delicate flowers right next to your child’s swing set.  Also think about the day-to-day upkeep of the garden and how often you want to maintain it.

Make a wish list of any specific plans you might have for your garden, like obstructing unpleasant views (utility areas or the neighbour’s used-car lot for example); or to cut down on lawn-mowing; to improve areas prone to erosion or drainage difficulties with garden décor; to beautify an area where grass won’t grow, etc.

Create different areas in your garden through the use of fences, paths, pebbled areas, decking, and archways.  You can add to the atmosphere by using different outdoor lighting.  If you enjoy entertaining, it may be worth investing in some outdoor heating and a BBQ or other outdoor cooking appliance.  Perhaps you could even design your own outdoor bar…

Once you have your layout in mind, you can now decorate your space with outdoor furniture.  There’s a lot of stylish garden furniture out there – from loungers to chair and table sets to hammocks and swings.  Have a look online and in stores.  If you are on a tight budget, check out eBay or Freecycle.

If your landscaping plans are getting the better of you – and you have room in your budget – call in the experts.  You can find landscape gardeners online or in the phone book.  If you do decide to go this route, request the quote of at least separate gardeners to get a guide price of how much you should be paying.

Better yet, if you know anyone who’s undertaken a similar project recently, ask them for recommendations. You’ll probably get lots of tips in addition to a mention of who to employ – or equally importantly, who to avoid – for your project.