I have sketched up this design (see photo of my chicken scratchings) and I tried AI to help me see what it what look like - it's made a few mistakes (ie, the astro doesn't go up to my corner built-in sofa - it has a tiled area infront and it's missin the strip of astro on the right, alongside the planter box). I'm after any help to make my design any better, before I get the landscaper to quote on it. Any suggestions, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Are you a keen gardener? I dont know what your budget is but there’s a lot of paving, built in beds and obviously the built in bench which is going to add up to a fair bit. It may help to add in a different surface, gravel is cheap and mixing materials works well. Perhaps add images of gardens you like to give people ideas

What do you plan on using the patio outside the house for? Where do you get the sun (assuming you like to sit in it!)

Hi Minnie, no I'm definitely not a keen gardener, I was planning on artifical plants in the planters and astroturf so gardening is kept at a minimum. The sun hits on the back left in the morning, hence the corner built in bench there. The afternoon/evening it hits on the back right side - hence the pergola with a comfy sofa and outdoor kitchen under it. The patio at the front - by the french doors to the house is for our current garden furniture - a large sofa, two chairs and a coffee table. Another area you could choose to sit at for some shade.

This is the current plan - the only difference being high platers behind the bench to form the seat backs. I just wondered if there were any tweaks that could make my design better. I tried to zone it up. ie, Would it be better the have the astro going to whole way across the first section and just have tiles to form a path with astro inbetween each tile?

This is showing the built in corner sofa - with raised planters behind to act as the back of the seat.

Thanks Minnie, looks like a cool design. Yes I'd consider some trees for sure.

I assume by the description of where the sun hits you’re south facing? It might be worth testing your soil and people can suggest really low maintenance trees and plants. No idea of cost but i had my garden done 2 years ago and really regret not putting in an irrigation system ( I’m new to gardening too!)

I also am not that keen on gardening but I love looking at plants! I've planted drought loving plants which need very little maintenance. Lavender, Santolina, Curry plants, phormiums and Yuccas.

In terms of design I would look at how to disguise the two walls either side. I would look at John Brooks Garden design book. Planting trees to partially block the view and prevent you seeing the boundaries would make the garden appear bigger and help to miminise the bricks on either side.

Hi Celina, there are quite a few low maintenance plants that you can plant. Not just trees. However to make the right selection you need to know the type of the soil and the light requirements. If you have childern or pets you also need to take this into consideration. Let me know if you would like to discuss further.

Hi Celina,

You've clearly put real thought into this — working the seating around where the sun actually lands is exactly the right starting point, and a lot of people don't bother to do that.

The thing that jumps out at me is the boundaries. Juliet's already touched on it, but those brick walls either side are pulling the garden in and making it feel smaller than it is. Everything in your plan sits quite low and flat at the moment, so your eye goes straight to the edges. If you get some height in — a couple of small multi-stem trees, something like an amelanchier or a birch, plus a few climbers up the walls — it breaks all that up, gives you privacy, and the whole space suddenly feels bigger. Honestly that'd make more difference than anything else you could change.

On the all-artificial idea — I get why you're going that way and there's no problem using astro for the lawn bits. I'd just be a little careful about doing the entire garden in fake, planters and all, because it can end up looking a bit like a showroom rather than somewhere you'd want to sit. You don't need much to fix it. A handful of real structural plants dotted in — the drought-tolerant stuff Juliet mentioned is ideal, lavender, phormium, that sort of thing — and it reads as low effort rather than plastic. Best of both really.

One last thing, and it's the bit I'd genuinely want someone to tell me before spending money: new-build gardens nearly always have compacted ground and iffy drainage under that turf, and the levels want sorting properly before anything permanent goes in. Built-in benches and raised planters are a pain and pricey to move once they're built, so it's worth having it all drawn up properly, to scale with the levels worked out, before your landscaper quotes off the sketch. That's usually where a bit of design money up front saves a much bigger building headache later.

That's the kind of thing we do anyway — proper buildable plans, all done remotely — so if you wanted a second pair of eyes on it before you commit, drop me a message. No pressure either way, good luck with it.

Janina, Baker Landscape Design