landscaping,design and build in Clevedon and North Somerset

I have an opportunity for a self employed landscape gardener to take on leads in Bristol, Weston super mare, North Somerset and Somerset areas. information

It is amazing how many landscapers and landscape designers are happy to give you what you want, take the money knowing it's not going to last unless you throw even more money at it season after season.      

 

Looks or practicality or both?

A garden makeover is sometimes Aesthetics over Functionality. Looks good but is unusable. You should be able to have both a landscaped garden that looks good and is safe, sustainable, convenient and usable.

I listen to you and discuss the practicalities and likely cost and then quote to build the imaginative and functional garden to the design you have in mind.

 

 

Maybe ............

  • something low maintenance, 
  • a cottage garden, 
  • outdoor paving offering space to relax and entertain, 
  • Safe play area for the children to play,
  • herbaceous borders, vegetable plot,
  • raised beds, sensory garden or simply a planting plan. 

I also design and build ponds and water features, so maybe consider Nature ponds, Water features, Streams & Waterfalls and create a wildlife friendly area and pond. 

 

Our designers first visit to discuss your ideas is free.

Help!!

My soil is very poor and my lawn is all worn and patchy 

what can I do?

  • You could take advice from green-lawn-man (Quite a few of them in Clevedon, he's the guy in love with his hosepipe and box of chemicals) and rush out to buy the expensive chemical "remedies" he claims will fix poor soil when in reality all you are doing is wasting money creating a lawn that becomes shallow rooting and dependent on chemical fixes and wasteful watering schedules.
  • Or there's a better way, plant a lawn that not only thrives on poor soil, but improves it over time. It makes the greenest and easiest lawn to maintain you could ever dream off, it stays green all summer, without being watered profusely because it's drought-tolerant and it doesn't need chemical fixes. More......

We're good, but some things landscaping can't change, 

Sunny south facing, Shady north facing, rocky, clay, sandy soils. So, we work with you to design a makeover that works with what you've got. 

Some things a makeover can change,

There are lots of attractive hill side gardens in Clevedon that can be made more accessible without losing their natural beauty, slopes can be leveled or terraced using retaining walls, garden drainage can be improved for water logged areas, raised beds for areas with poor or soggy soil, or you might just need easier access to your borders, patios for entertaining or just relaxing, block paved parking areas, special turf for shady areas. 

Live with the things that can't be changed and change the things that can.

Contact Mike

  

Our garden design service in Clevedon and North Somerset.

Ideas
First Visit is free, to meet up and talk over your ideas, have a look at your garden and agree a meeting to prepare a detailed brief and the basis of the design. 
Site Survey. We will usually carry this out but for large scale changes in levels a report by a Land Surveyor may  be needed.

Design
This meeting sets out the proposals for your garden, including areas of hard landscaping and planting plans. The plan is discussed and agreed with you and any changes will made at this stage.  
After agreeing the outline, a Layout Plan is drawn up  showing the position of the main features  and how the garden is to be set out and constructed. Its the basis for us or a landscape gardening contractor of your choice to build your Garden from.

Construction
Construction Drawings - if necessary, separate drawings can be provided of water features etc. 
Landscape gardening -  If you choose your own gardening contractor to do the work, we can monitor the work 
and visit the site on a regular basis to ensure that work is being carried out to our design.

Planting
Planting  plans will detail the name of each plant, position, spacing for planting and quantities required. 
Supply and Planting - We can source the plants, and if required plant them. 

Maintenance gardening.
The services of a local maintenance gardener 
can also be arranged.
 


Saving money on Garden design fees.
Design it yourself,  Designing your own garden layout can save hundreds of pounds. There are many books, CDs and websites that can help. Probably the best way, especially if you are not sure your ideas are practical, is to discuss them on site with a good landscape gardener.

There may be a charge if the changes to the garden involve drainage or leveling, but If you hire the landscaper to do the work they will probably refund any charge.

TIP. If you do use a professional garden designer, make sure every aspect of the work is covered, including gradients, retaining walls, suitable hard landscaping materials, water table and garden drainage in the plan. Some "airy fairy" garden designers are great at planting plans and aerial views, but not so good at the practical stuff.

  • If the design involves moving tons of soil, is their access for a digger?
  • If the layout includes digging out a pond or deep footings for retaining walls, will the water table allow excavation?
  • If paving is planned for low areas of the garden, will the area require drainage to be installed?
  • These are just some of the problems I have found this year, following plans drawn up by professional landscape garden designers.

Colours
 you have in your garden say a lot about
 You   Plants for colour
Mobility landscaping

I also design and build gardens to assist mobility and easy access for elderly people, wheelchair gardeners and folk with disabilities and arthritis that makes bending over, getting around and gardening difficult.This includes non slip pathways, leveling slopes, raised beds and low maintenance schemes. Disabled gardening       

 

The old Somerset landscape gardener
 
 He had two large patio builders buckets, each hung on the ends of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the buckets was a bit rusty and had a crack in it, while the other bucket was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water.

At the end of the often long walks from the water tap to the cement mixer, the cracked bucket arrived only half full. This went on over the many years of building gardens in North Somerset,with the landscape gardener tipping only one and a half pots of water into the cement mixer. Of course,the perfect builders bucket was proud of its accomplishments.
But the poor cracked bucket was ashamed of its own imperfection and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been paid to do.
 
One day during a trip to get water for the latest job in Clevedon, following years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, the cracked builders bucket said to Mike "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to the cement mixer"
Mike smiled and said: "Did you notice that there were always flowers growing on your side of the paths we built, but not on the other bucket's side?" he went on, "That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path and every day while we walked back, you watered them." 

The old landscape gardener went on: "For all these years I have been thanked by our clients in Clevedon, who long after we have loaded up our truck and gone, have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate there homes.
 
Without you being just the way you are, the flowers could not have grown and made our customers extra happy with our work, and we would not have had so many of the recommendations that have helped keep us working, even through these tough times"

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding
Our landscaping services in Clevedon
  • Patio laying patios and block paving, sandstone landscapes.
  • Lawn care Turfing and general lawn care, preparing the surface and laying turf
  • Garden ponds Repairing and building ponds using liners or puddled clay
  • Mobility Tips and landscaping services, raised beds, paths for wheelchair gardeners and no dig gardening.
  • Garden drainage Advice and drainage services, herringbone, french drains and soakaways
  • Sloping gardens Retaining and leveling tips, building retaining walls digging out slopes and more.