Hard Landscaping

Our understanding of ‘Hard Landscaping’ is that it is the backbone of your gardens integrity. This covers walls, paths, patios, decking, fencing, driveways etc. Without any of these factors what is your garden? It’s a peace of grassland maybe with some soft landscaping attributes no true height or use. Hard landscaping can also extend your house out into the garden, it helps to create an outdoor room.

Soft Landscaping

Soft Landscaping is the mass of the design a restricted colour palette makes for the best results. Plants, Shrubs and Trees can be used to complement a design or create a mood, it can also be used to affect our sense of distance and perspective. It is only with the true selection and placing of suitable plants and tress can you create the desired effect within the design scheme. These choices are further restricted by the horticultural requirements of the plants and trees.

Principles of Garden Design

• Simplicity - Not busy, fussy or contrived.

 

• Scale and Proportion - Is achieved when the separate elements are in scale with each other. Elements out of proportion might be a narrow boarder surrounding a large open space, a narrow path/steps leading from a broad terrace, a tall wall around a small space, etc.

 

• Balance - Is achieved when the separate elements (mass, void, colour, light, shade, hard materials) carry similar volume, weight and size of area, and this can be achieved either symmetrically or asymmetrically.

 

• Unity and Harmony - These are achieved over time, they are not instantaneous as plants and trees need time to grow. Unity and harmony are often absent in the early stage of a gardens development. This is all achieved when all the separate elements of the garden come relate to one other so that no one part appears to be incongruous or out of place.

 

• Interest - A garden without interest will never be successful. What is ‘interesting’ however is rather like beauty, ie. In the eye of the beholder.