From dream to realization—a difficult decision-making process of garden design budget.

Don’t kid yourself, and let’s be honest, the right budget comes from thinking carefully about specific things you might like and what you want from your plantings and your garden as a whole. And prioritizing the list down to the most important ones, those that, while satisfying, you can live without garden features budget will make a difference here. This reflective process brings clarity and direction to your design process, honing your ideas into a brief that you can then use to inform, guide, and ultimately support any design decisions you may make.

What time of day do you enjoy gardening at home?

During the day, or only on evenings and weekends?

Who uses the garden?

Certain people usually have certain requirements.

Example: For younger children, a sandy play space is required

privacy requirements

Issues such as privacy will significantly affect how you use your garden. Inspect the space to determine what needs to be changed, considering your lifestyle.

Ex: sunbathing, swimming, socializing

An imaginary garden, or what “design vision”?

Do you like a certain style? Think about the atmosphere. Are you longing for a place to dine and entertain amidst buzzing company, or a quiet place to rest and relax? So what would planting look like? Functional concepts ranging from sustainability to encouraging wildlife were also invaluable and rounded out the design options again. Use words or images to describe or translate your thoughts. An analogy may be useful: for example, “Beach”, “Secret Garden” and “Orchard Glade” can help you to formulate design ideas (see: Garden Design Requirements)

How long do you intend to live where you are now?

If you plan to relocate soon, fast-growing perennials and ornamental grasses are better choices than many slower-growing shrubs. Likewise, large, semi-ripe specimens may satisfy the requirement for immediate impact, but they don’t come cheap – can you justify the expense?