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Common Garden Design Mistakes To Look Out For

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  • Admin
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  • Patio Location Considerations, Simplicity in Garden Design, Harmonizing Garden Colors, Maintenance Friendly Garden Planning, Year Round Garden Appeal
  • Posted date:
  • 06-09-2023
Common Garden Design Mistakes To Look Out For

Common garden design mistakes to look out for. Whether you're a novice or seasoned gardener, discover how to enhance your garden's appeal by steering clear of these common design missteps. 

Putting The Patio In The Wrong Place

Choosing the ideal spot for your patio is a fundamental part of garden design, as it impacts the overall aesthetics and functionality of your garden. Ensuring the patio's location aligns with factors like light exposure, privacy, and proximity to your home is essential.

For instance, a shaded patio can be uncomfortably chilly, whereas a remote one may be inconvenient. The usual location for a patio, terrace, or decking is immediately outside the rear of the home. However, this might not always be the best choice. Moving the terrace to a different part of the garden, despite it being further from the home, could encourage more frequent use.

Remember to ensure your patio or deck's size is proportional to your garden's size, regardless of its location. It's common to make the mistake of creating a patio that's too large for the available space. While there's no strict rule, the patio should be balanced with your home's room sizes and the overall garden area.

If you have a smaller patio, it's important to be mindful of surrounding plant growth. As plants mature, they can encroach on the patio space, reducing the usable area. Maintaining this balance can enhance your garden's functionality, ensuring you make the most of your outdoor space.

 Common Garden Design Mistakes To Look Out For

Overly Busy Garden Design

In the pursuit of creating your perfect outdoor space, the rule of thumb is 'less is more.' This approach in garden design suggests avoiding overwhelming your garden with multiple varied elements. Adding too many details can transform a harmonious outdoor space into a chaotic one, which can detract from its overall beauty.

To achieve a well-rounded, balanced design, focus on integrating a select few key elements that enhance both each other and the general architectural style of your home. As with any art form, it is about creating a sense of balance and unity.

A common misstep in garden design is overcomplication - a pitfall one can easily avoid. In a bid to craft the perfect garden, some individuals often try to introduce too many ideas at once. However, the importance of simplicity should not be diminished.

A streamlined and aesthetically pleasing garden is more impactful and can be accomplished by selecting materials that complement the house and minimising the diversity of materials involved. When formulating a planting plan, ensure you stick to a shared theme for a cohesive look. This can be achieved by choosing more of the same plants instead of mixing too many different ones.

A repetition of the same plants can maintain a sense of harmony and showcase an aesthetic. The philosophy of 'less is more' reigns supreme, especially when it comes to smaller gardens. By providing enough open space, your garden's perception of size can vastly improve and become more inviting to the eye. Implementing grand designs can end up cluttering smaller spaces, leading to more harm than good.

Remember, small gardens only necessitate a minimal amount of landscaping to be effective. Avoid overcrowding your flora or introducing too much colour as it can overshadow the impact of your garden. Striking the right balance can prevent your garden from seeming garish, instead of beautiful and well-constructed, which can unfortunately make it appear unsightly.

Using Colours That Clash

Colour can be a powerful design tool, but when used incorrectly, it can create a jarring and disjointed aesthetic. Try to avoid using colours that clash. Instead, go for a colour palette that enhances the unity and tranquillity of your garden. Consider the colours of your plants, flowers, and patio materials. Use colours that complement instead of compete with each other.

Everyone generally places colourful plants in their gardens - it brings the space to life. However, the overall impression can become overbearing and washed out if those colours start to compete with nearby structures and other plants. It typically happens when someone has a strong preference for bright colours. Bright blue next to reds or yellows can quickly turn into a mess of colour if they're done wrong.

You can absolutely plant as many different colours as you want in your garden - after all, it's yours. However, it's good to keep in mind that an excessive amount of mixed colours can be visually distracting if you're aiming for a harmonious scene.

Professionals often advise using no more than three primary colours when designing a smaller-sized garden. The atmosphere of your garden can be directly influenced by the colour of your plants and flowers - which also alters how you perceive the available space.

Flowers, leaves, and even the stems of shrubs and the bark of trees can all provide colour for you to work with. Plan your colour palette around your outdoor furniture as well. Accent pieces like pots, decorations, and painted walls can really make your garden come to life.

Using Colours That Clash - Common Garden Design Mistakes

Using Colours That Clash

Forgetting To Factor In Maintenance - Common Garden Design Mistakes

Forgetting To Factor In Maintenance

Forgetting To Factor In Maintenance

When planning your garden, it's essential to consider long-term maintenance. An attractive yet high-maintenance garden can be burdensome, particularly if you have a busy schedule. You must always take into account how much time and effort you're prepared to invest in maintaining your garden. Select low-maintenance plants and hard-wearing materials to help lessen the load of care.

While visually appealing, intricately shaped topiaries, pristine lawns and flowerbeds can quickly become challenging to manage if you don't have enough time to look after them. These elaborate plans necessitate constant maintenance. Be candid about the amount of time you can dedicate to your garden unless you're prepared to employ a professional gardener regularly to uphold your designs.

Hardy evergreens and gravel are low-maintenance choices that can have an equally substantial impact and may be more suitable for your lifestyle. Neglected grass, hedges, desiccated plants and dirty patios can significantly detract from the appeal of your garden. When drawing up plans for how you want your space to look, maintenance is a key factor to consider.

The time you have to upkeep your garden is crucial if you wish to maintain its beauty year-round. Your garden, just like your home, deserves attention and care, such as trimming hedges, watering plants and ensuring that weeds aren't sneaking through the cracks. Having a beautiful garden is rewarding, but it must also be taken care of. Opting for low-maintenance plants or a more minimal garden design can make maintenance tasks more manageable.

Considering The Four Seasons - Common Garden Design Mistakes

Not Considering The Four Seasons

Extending your gardening wisdom to a whole year, rather than just focusing on spring or summer, is vital for maintaining the aesthetics of your garden. Designing your garden with the four seasons in mind is like painting a picture with a year-round palette of colours.

If you only plan for a burst of colours and life during the spring, you risk leaving your garden bare and unappealing during the colder months. So, don't just pick your favourite spring bloomers like roses, irises or peonies. Branch out and include a diverse range of plants that can flourish throughout the year. This includes choosing options such as sturdy patio materials that can weather all seasons.

The ultimate goal is to ensure that your garden remains visually pleasing and colourful, irrespective of the time of year. So, consider plants that bloom at various times, not just in spring but also in summer, autumn, and even winter. For example, imagine your garden hosting evergreen plants, trees with intriguing barks, and perennial grasses. These types of plants will not only bloom in different seasons but will also provide unique textures and tones to your garden.

Their resilience means they can withstand winter's chill and still offer the sight of beautiful straw-coloured plumes. Take, for instance, the Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy'. This plant displays alluring dark purple heart-shaped leaves in the summer, following a showing of pinky-violet flowers in the spring.

As autumn arrives, its leaves turn into a lovely shade of yellow before they drop off, leaving behind multiple stems that are visually appealing even in winter's starkness.

Another excellent choice for small gardens is the Amelanchier lamarckii or other trees of the Amelanchier family. They add a burst of white star-shaped flowers in the spring, and tasty blackberries in the summer. But the autumn season is when they truly stand out, as their foliage transforms into a stunning orange hue.

Maintaining a beautiful and thriving garden extends far beyond the warm spring and summer months. With careful planning and smart plant choices, you can avoid common gardening pitfalls and ensure that your garden remains vibrant and attractive throughout the entire year. Remember, successful garden design is a symphony of colour and life that plays all year long.


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