Choosing a Garden Designer who will also build Your Garden
An ordinary day becomes extraordinary when you come home to a beautiful garden. To smell the delicate scent of flowers in bloom, while enjoying the warm embrace of lush greenery is indeed a relaxing experience. A unique, well-planned garden becomes a magical place capable of restoring happiness and relieving you from the rigours of the modern workplace.
Choosing a garden designer who will also build your garden is a smart step when attempting to transform a garden into a private sanctuary. Even if you have an ongoing love affair with gardening, the professional touch of a garden designer, who is also familiar with the design implementation, will result in a cohesive space that is aesthetically pleasing whilst requiring minimal maintenance.
Coming up with a comprehensive garden design at the start provides a clear vision both to you and to the landscaper. Looking at 2D plans & 3D Models of the design before the actual construction starts, also provides excitement in the process. It is much easier to see those special little details that will be seamlessly incorporated into the overall composition. If there is a need to work on a limited budget and schedule, then implementing the project in stages can be planned in advance.
Creating a functional landscaped garden takes professional skills, an artist’s eye and some serious planning to complete within a target schedule. Although others are attempting to execute this on their own during weekends, the stress from hard labour and second guessing may cost a great deal of money in the long run.
It is vital that water features and ponds in particular should be structurally sound, so that the chance any expensive disasters are completely avoided. A pond that is positioned right under bordering overhanging trees could affect the growth of aquatic plants, may require higher upkeep in the end and could be at structural risk from the growth of tree roots. Similarly, plants that turn into the wrong shades of colour when in bloom or grow uncontrollably can make your design feel unbalanced and clunky.
The correct natural stone paving should be chosen for the correct environment. For example, fruits and leaves blown down from nearby trees can permanently stain certain porous stones and what looks good on paper does not always translate successfully into the real world. This sort of practical knowledge and experience offered by companies that both design and build, has a clear advantage over choosing two contractors for these individual elements.
A professional garden designer and landscaper has a strong knowledge of soil conditions, terrain, and climate in a local setting, as well as the ideal plants to use. With a vision in mind, plants are picked based on their colours, functional use, and suitability to the growing conditions, but they are also chosen for more abstract reasons such as their visual form and structure as well as their natural movement.
Another significant benefit of connecting with garden designers is that they can plan a garden layout based on current needs as well as future. With some minor adjustments, an area in the garden can be converted to another functional space that you think you might need in the next few years. Do check out the portfolio, testimonials and referrals of prospective garden designers to get a feel for their style and expertise. If an actual visit to a garden that they have recently designed and constructed would help in your decision, then do so.
Before finalising anything, it is essential to request the garden designers in your short list to visit your garden first. This is the right time to identify its key elements, divulge the pre-existing conditions of the site and express the basic needs in the garden. Once a quotation is prepared and approved, a more thorough discussion of the design details will then follow.
It is crucial to declare at the onset the available budget for the construction and maintenance of the garden. This help to dictate the quality of materials and design elements that can be incorporated. Given that the designer is also knowledgeable with the construction and has close ties with local suppliers, other alternative choices can be suggested and ways to get them at a discounted price or make the best use of your proposed budget.
Clear communication is vital to the success of any project. A reputable designer should be a good listener, communicator and someone who is easy to work with. By choosing a garden designer who will also build your garden, the usual communication struggles brought by hiring separate landscape contractors are eliminated. Instructions and last minute changes in the design are sent out only in one direction and not to multiple entities. It is this kind of clarity that will allow you to sit back and enjoy the process as your new garden takes shape before your eyes.
