Design process

Step 1: Initial consultation and brief

Every biodiverse garden design project begins with an initial  in person consultation and site visit. These relaxed conversations allow us to get to know each other, discuss your garden's ecological, functional, and aesthetic vision, and collaborate to create an initial meaningful client brief.

 

Step 2: Site/ecological survey and analysis

This is a vital stage in the process. Before anything else , before a single plant is chosen or a line is drawn,  we need to understand your site properly.

We need to understand what the site wants to be, We need to understand previous land use and how its been managed in the past, all of these factors are considered when designing the space.

The analysis begins with a detailed site visit. For larger spaces, I'll commission a full topographic survey. Alongside this, we will carry out a preliminary ecological assessment to establish what habitats are currently present and what condition they're in. This matters. What's already there, the plants, the structure, the wildlife using the space, tells us a great deal about what the garden can become, and where we need to tread carefully. Everything gathered at this stage directly informs what comes next: the concept

Standard practice is for garden designers to present you with a single concept design. We don't work that way.

From the first concept through to the final plan, you are part of the design team. .

We lead. That's what you're hiring us for. But your thinking, your instincts, and your evolving understanding of the space and what can be achieved in it are central to every stage. A space designed in isolation, however beautiful, is still someone else's idea of what your garden should be.

We also give the process the time it deserves. And that's where we differ. Time in the design process is so important. A quick turnaround might feel efficient, but it doesn't give you, or us, the space to think, reflect, and feel deeply about what your space can really evolve into.

Some of the most important decisions in a project only surface after sitting with an idea for a while. We build that time in deliberately. Designing in haste isn't the way we work.



Three concepts, not one. Multiple in-person meetings, not a single presentation. Design decisions made around your kitchen table. A garden that evolves through genuine collaboration, not a product handed over at the end.

You are making an investment in your space, and we need to get this right.

 

Step 3: Outline garden design plans

Guided by your brief, the ecological survey and  site analysis, we develop a range of design ideas for your garden. These include outline spatial design proposals, presented as a garden plan, a 3D CAD model, and photoshopped visuals to help you envision your new garden.

Step 4: Landscape masterplan

Once a garden concept is selected, we create a final landscape masterplan, detailing the agreed layout and design of your new garden.

Step 5: Detailed design and specification

From here, we move into the detail , the work that makes a design actually function on the ground. This covers both hard and soft landscaping: construction drawings and specifications for the built elements, and planting plans and wildflower seed mixes for everything that grows. I don't work on this in isolation. Depending on the project, I'll bring in ecologists, architects, engineers, and planning consultants , whoever the site demands , to make sure every element of the design holds together properly.

Step 6: Sourcing a landscape contractor

We have a preferred landscaper we typically work with; however, if you'd like us to coordinate the tendering and quotation process on your behalf, we can facilitate this. This may involve a restricted tender process, where three recommended contractors are invited to provide quotes for the garden build.

Step 7: Garden build and planting

With a professional landscape contractor on-site, we can monitor the garden installation on your behalf, working closely with the contractor to ensure your garden is built and planted to the highest quality standards.

Step 8: Post-completion and after-care

Design and installation are just the beginning. Ongoing maintenance and management are vital to a garden's long-term success , perhaps more so than any other part of the process.

We want to maintain an ongoing relationship with you and your garden. That means working alongside your chosen gardener or gardening team, providing the guidance and support needed to keep everything on track as it establishes and evolves.

We want to be involved for the long term.