Blog

How to create a stunning display of lavender

September is a great month to plant lavender bushes, perfect for attracting bees and butterflies and giving a great long summer display of beautifully scented flowers. However, it’s important to select the right type of lavender to give it the best start. Although French lavender is beautiful, it’s not as hardy as an English lavender. So firstly, ensure you select a Lavender Angustifolia for hardiness through the winter. Secondly, I do recommend you buy from a good garden centre or nursery rather than a supermarket. Lavender needs well-drained soil and a sunny position. Don’t plant individual plants too close together as they will

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Sneak preview of a new garden design

I've been working on a new rooftop garden design which has amazing borrowed views of West Lancashire. Creating a rooftop garden is completely different to designing a usual garden outside a house. Weight limits are of course one of the initial concerns, as well as slightly different environmental situation.In this garden design, we’ve selected an Amelanchier tree, also known as a juneberry tree. This stunning specimen tree is a deciduous tree, with a beautiful white flower in the spring and an orange leaf in the autumn. This is a hardy species and will not grow too large for the space.Sedum has

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A borrowed view…

A ‘borrowed view’ is a classic garden design technique and is not to be underestimated. Within a design, we can include the wider view seen in the distance, as well as features such as large trees within neighbouring gardens, and include them within the overall design. A garden design should always be set within its own landscape, taking inspiration from the natural flora and fauna. Taking note of the local trees, types of plants that flourish and natural landscape materials is a huge consideration with playing with a design. The beauty of a ‘borrowed landscape’ is that it extends your view and can make an

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Scatter your self-seeding annuals for a bigger bloom next year

Self-seeding flowers are one of a gardener's joys, especially if you have large areas to plant. Once these plants are established in your garden, you can scatter the seed heads elsewhere in your garden to spread the joy!Of course, they may seed anywhere, but once you become familiar with the seedlings, you can pull them out if they appear somewhere you don’t want them to.If you want to establish these plants from scratch, you are better waiting until spring to sow your seeds. Eschscholzia californicaThese wild orange or yellow poppies, otherwise known as California poppies, bring joy every time I see them. If

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Planting design ideas from Castlefield Viaduct

Built in 1892, this steel viaduct used to bring heavy rail traffic in and out of the Great Northern Warehouse, but has been unused since 1969.It has now been reclaimed for public use and turned into a ‘sky garden’ by the National Trust. It recently opened, allowing just 100 people per day to have a guided tour and give their feedback.One of our team recently visited the site and the planting was stunning as expected, with trees chosen for their specific historical uses, as well as lots of bountiful flowering borders.It’s brilliant to see another visitor attraction which gives city dwellers the opportunity to see greenery

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New garden design in Lancashire

I’ve been pulling the picture together for this beautiful garden and outdoor living area in Thistleton in Lancashire. We commissioned a bespoke concrete bench for the perfect contemporary look, set off by the grasses.Calamagrostis were the grasses chosen for this garden for their upright feathery plumes, and gentle rustling sound. This perennial has a really long growing season from early spring. In the summer, the silvery pinkish flowers look stunning and then turn into golden seed heads from autumn onwards. It’s easy to look after and just needs a winter cut, ready for the next growing season.  We added a row

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Fesfoc grill WM design garden

Luxury high-end outdoor kitchen equipment

We have recently started working with Fesfoc, which is a very high end, top quality outdoor kitchen equipment manufacturer, based in Barcelona.They offer true craftsmanship combined with advanced technology to create the ultimate in outdoor cooking.There is a choice of professional-level gas or charcoal grill, which is designed to cook to perfection.They also have created a stunning outdoor sink and storage unit in stainless steel for optimum resistance against weather and wear.Their products really do create a stand-out high-end luxury experience, so we’re really excited to continue our relationship and bring more of their products to the UK.Castlefield Viaduct opensThe ‘skyline’

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RHS Tatton

Key highlights from RHS Tatton

RHS Tatton was a fabulous show yet again this year, despite the builds suffering from the intense heatwave earlier last week (we’ve been there and it’s hard work!). One of the standout gardens for me was the ‘Working from Home’ garden by 26-year-old Will Scholey, who achieved 'Young Designer of the Year', as well as a silver gilt medal. The design concept was to create a space to work from while reducing the homeowner’s carbon footprint. The ‘daily commute’ was a winding gravel path through native meadow planting with multi-stemmed trees. The hard landscaping was all reclaimed, and there were mounds of

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RHS Tatton

RHS Tatton launches for 2022

The RHS Tatton Flower Show launched on Wednesday this week – and by the time you read this newsletter I will be on my way to take a look. While doing big shows is amazing, it’s really nice to be going this year as a visitor. This time last year, I had just launched the Rewilding Garden, created with Cheshire East Council. In the month run-up to the show, we cordoned off a 10x10m area of the parkland where our garden would be, and allowed wild flowers and plants to grow naturally, and based other planting around this. The whole idea was to

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Outdoor kitchen garden design Michael John McGarr

New outdoor kitchen design for Cheshire

We are just finishing the designs for this outdoor kitchen and garden design in Cheshire. This is the night time view of what it will look like from the back of the house, and as you can see, lighting is really important here. It’s so important to visualise what a garden design will look like in the late evenings and during the winter when it gets dark early. Uplighting underneath the statement trees gives a focus while soft lighting within the outdoor kitchen and dining area means it’s still useable in the evenings. This outdoor kitchen has a large covered area for prepping

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Looking at low-maintenance planting design?

How many of us have spent good money on bedding plants or exotic plants that have either shrivelled up and died or needed to be watered every day throughout the summer? Although we get plenty of rainfall in the UK, there can be weeks where we have very dry periods which can really affect the more delicate garden planting. I have long advocated for designing gardens and creating planting schemes using both native and drought-tolerant plants rather than plants or trees that require intensive care and extra water. Naturalistic planting design has become much more popular in recent years, and is now

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Outdoor kitchen by WM Design

Planning your outdoor kitchen

We are still receiving many enquiries about outdoor kitchens with a full range of facilities – so now is the best time to plan out exactly what you want.It’s best to plan around where the sun falls in your garden, during the middle of summer, and decide which parts of the garden you are most likely to use in the morning, the afternoon and then in the evening.Take a look around and figure out where are the best places to cook, where you would put your dining area, and where you want a sunbathing area.Most people want a high quality

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