The Long Thin Garden Makeover

Before: Typical of many urban gardens, this city garden's focus was on the uninteresting back wall. It was also overlooked by neighbours. The challenge was to create a contemporary look for it with plenty of private seating space.

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Before

After

The layout of the new garden is created with a series of boxy sections both within the horizontal spaces of flower beds and decking

After: So, how do you make a long, thin space, so typical of urban and suburban gardens, more interesting? Here's how.

Create An Unusual Layout

Since the owners of this garden didn't need space for a lawn, they could be more adventurous and create something that was more of an homage to the planting than a space to play. The layout of the new garden is created with a series of boxy sections – both within the horizontal spaces of flower beds and decking, and the vertical structures, such as the wire pergola and the stainless steel sculpture. Find out more about how to build a deck in our step by step guide and how to plan and design a deck in our planning feature.

Use Vertical Space

The pergola provides a private walkway to another decked area at the back of the plot, but also has another function, which is to create a tall decorative focus. The upside with using a pergola to do this, rather than, say, a tree, is that it's easy to maintain in its current shape and at its current height - and it breaks up the view between the front and back halves of the garden.

Make It Easy To Look After

The owners wanted a garden that was as interesting to look at as it was easy to look after, so the vast flower beds were planted with low-maintenance shrubs that will grow to fill the spaces with a range of shapes, colours and textures all year round.

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Pictures: Marie O’Hara/www.garden-collection.com