It started off in engineering, then moved to architecture and is now taking hold in the garden design profession. What is it? Computer aided drawing (or drafting or design), otherwise known as CAD. At Pure Garden Design we’re committed to the use of CAD but there are some garden designers who seem to feel that using a computer to draw somehow results in an inferior end product.

I’m never sure why that is - after all, you never drew an entire plan using only freehand techniques but drew on a number of artificial tools and techniques which had to be learned before you could generate professional looking results. Scale rules, protractors, compasses and the dreaded smudgy Rotring pens all take a bit of getting used to and can be very frustrating at first.

Even with CAD the drawing board still has a place in the design studio - even when using pressure and tilt sensitive pens on graphics tablets is still hard to ‘doodle’ with the same freedom that you have with a soft pencil on a piece of tracing paper. But, and it’s a big but, as soon as that basic design starts to take shape the computer now offers the best solution for developing it from rough shapes into a client presentation drawing and then on to contractors drawings, planting plans and so on. There’s a massive productivity benefit to gained from the ability to make comprehensive revisions to a project for a 5 acre site and re-issue an entire suite of contractor’s drawings in only an hour or so, and this also translates into being able to be more flexible with our clients while remaining cost effective and keeping a lid on the design fee.

Some of the reluctance to adopting CAD probably comes from the fear of going from the known, familiar environment of the drawing board to the unfamiliar and potentially frustrating environment of the CAD system. This is where effective training and support is so important, which brings me to the point of writing this entry.

We’ve spent a fair proportion of July engaged in CAD tuition, both Vectorworks and Sketchup. It’s not a service that we publicise too heavily as the practice’s main focus is on garden design, but we do get asked to help people now and again. These are usually ‘word of mouth’ type referrals, and are often people who’ve done an expensive CAD course elsewhere then not sat in front of their PC for months, so when they do come back they’re completely flummoxed by the program. Our tuition always takes place on the client’s site and on their machine, preferably using a live project of theirs as an example so that the work we do is of immediate benefit to them.

We also offer a post tuition support service - if anyone gets stuck or (more usually) frustrated about doing something a long-winded way we can use a remote desktop service to work with them to solve the problem. Again this is more effective than just emailing files back and forth as we can work on the problem together and we can each follow every movement of the mouse and every click, rather than trying to decipher a page of ‘help’ text.

There’s no doubt that in the coming years the use of CAD in garden design will follow the same trend as in architecture practices - Sir Norman Foster and Frank Gehry still do pencil sketches of their buildings concepts, but I bet there aren’t many drawing boards to be seen in their offices!

Phew - 2008 is flying by at the moment. Here’s another update of some of our current projects.

The good news is that our project in Weybridge has now been fully signed off by the client and they have been in touch to say that the new garden is already getting complements from neighbours and visitors. The bespoke metal railings were the last component of the garden to be installed (along with the Hornbeam hedge that sits behind them) and these really were the ‘icing on the cake’. We hope to have some photos of the site in the ‘case studies‘ part of the website soon. This project was split into two separate phases, and the work just completed was the first of these - the second phase is loosely scheduled for late 2008/early 2009 and will see the construction of a formal terrace and lawns in the 1/3 acre site.

Construction has continued apace in Rowledge and the hard landscaping is virtually complete. We’re meeting the clients shortly to run through the planting proposals, though it is likely that much of the planting will be delayed until the autumn. We expect to plant up the area immediately around the house as this is the part of the garden that will be used the most in the summer (and is the easiest to maintain) with the lower terrace levels being left until later.

In Farnborough work is progressing well on our project at the sloping site, though the contractors are now getting a little distracted by the planes practicing their air displays for the Air Show!  At the time of writing work was focussed on the construction of the main water feature that will link the two levels of the garden - here’s a photo of the work in progress (below). We’ve also agreed the planting proposals with the client but, as with our Rowledge project, the client is keeping an eye on how the ‘long hot summer of 2008′ develops before committing to a planting date.

We’ve also presented our sketch proposal for the small family garden near Hook - the clients were pleased with our concept and we’re now moving forward to the more detailed design stages. We’ve also agreed the final concept for a front & back garden project in Sandhurst and we’re now developing the drawings needed by the contractors and will be meeting the client on their return from a business trip to agree materials and finishes.

As usual, here’s the latest situation of some of our projects to give an idea of the range of work that we do. Despite the vagaries of the weather there’s been a fair bit of progress with our ‘live’ projects on site this month, though of course it would have been even better with a more stable weather pattern.

In Rowledge the construction work is progressing on the garden we’ve designed for a new build house with 5 acres of grounds and around 1 acre of designated garden. The site sits on the side of a small valley so there is a considerable slope from the house to the bottom of the garden, and to make the site more useable for the owner’s family our design includes a level lawn area close to the house. This required a fair bit of construction, but most of the retaining walls are now built (see the image below) and work is proceeding on the paving and preparation for planting. We’re now working on the planting plan and are looking forward to the increasingly rare opportunity to plant some native English Oak to enhance the landscape for years to come.

In Weybridge we are nearing completion on the first phase of the formal gardens for an early 20th century tile hung house with a garden of around 1/3 acre. The contractors have now returned to the site to hang the new bespoke metal railings that will give the property’s frontage its own individual character - more photos to follow in due course.

In Farnborough both of our projects have started construction on site. The first of these is a sloping site which is being transformed into a terraced garden with water linking the different levels. As long as the weather is favourable the contractor expects to have the hard landscaping complete by mid July, but that leaves us at rather a poor time of year to be investing a reasonable sum of money in plants for a new garden. We’ve agreed with the client that we’ll have to play things by ear when it comes to the planting - if we get the warm, wet summer that’s been predicted then we may be OK but the client is prepared to defer the bulk of the planting to later in the year if necessary.

Our second project in Farnborough is for a house which is currently undergoing refurbishment. The back garden also has a fair slope on it and as it hadn’t been touched for years it had slowly turned into a jungle, so even a quick clear out and spruce up would have been a major undertaking. The new garden includes a barbecue area and space for a hot tub as well as a reasonable lawn to allow the kids (of all ages!) to play. The site has been cleared and the main construction is scheduled to start this month.

On the drawing board we’re still working with our client in Sandhurst to develop a scheme that delivers all the functionality that the client wants while fitting with their target budget. The client works overseas quite frequently so our use of modern computer generated visuals has been a real benefit during this process. We’re able to work up a new proposal and email that directly to the client wherever they are rather than having to wait for them to be back in the UK so we can visit them in person and present sketches on paper.

We’ve also recently been commissioned to design a small family garden for a house on a recent development near Hook in Hampshire, and are in the process of tendering for the construction of a new elevated terrace for a house in Sandhurst. More news on these and other projects as they develop.

So the Chelsea Flower Show is upon us once again and the media is full of claims about this being the ‘cutting edge’ of garden design, showing the latest trends and fashions. There are always claims that the show gardens are like the London Fashion week of the gardening world - but let’s remember a couple of things about Chelsea. First of all, it’s not a garden design show - it’s a flower show. That means that the actual design of the gardens is only really considered at the outset, and the judging is done by assessing whether the finished garden meets the designer’s original brief (as well as the quality of construction and planting). The judging panel contains a number of high profile designers so there is clearly some filtering of the schemes for quality and content, but they are certainly not ‘cutting edge’.

The second thing to remember is that the show is organised by the RHS and is a high profile media frenzy. The show gardens all have significant budgets and therefore are sponsored by big names who want the gardens to gain exposure. This means that they must be accessible to the mass market and must reflect the qualities and values of the sponsors and the RHS - we only need to look at the gradual taming of Diarmuid Gavin’s Chelsea gardens to see this effect. This all combines to mean that the designs selected are less like London Fashion Week and more like a designer clothing label launching their latest high street collection.

For the London Fashion Week equivalent of garden design we need to look at events where designers are given free reign to come up with ideas and where funding is provided by the show’s organisers rather than commercial interests. The French Chaumont festival is the classic example, as was the short-lived Westonbirt festival. The good news is that it looks like the Westonbirt festival may be relaunched at a new venue in the near future, giving a chance to show some truly ‘cutting edge’ schemes.

Anyhow, it’s true that there are some common trends at Chelsea this year - we’ll wait to see how many of them filter down into the domestic market.

Lots of still water - much of it overflowing it’s container to create a smooth edge, and much of it using organic black dye to get that great reflective quality. Of course the downside for the domestic market is that open water may be an issue for clients with children, and the perfect flat surface doesn’t look quite so good when it’s covered with a slick of pollen or leaves.

Lots of green planting, using foliage texture and form to add interest rather than relying on colour. This is really not a new trick for planting design as more often than not the flower lasts a fraction of the time that the plant is in leaf, so if the foliage doesn’t work together then the flowers won’t save the scheme.

Green roofs are everywhere - and not just using the old favourites like Sedum’s. Green roof technology is becoming more mainstream and there are now several solutions available on the market, so they no longer require specialists to design and install (apart of course from a structural engineer to make sure the roof can take the load). They are generally low maintenance solutions and can be used for anything from a rabbit hutch to an office block - perhaps this is Chelsea reflecting the current mood rather than dictating it, but any higher profile for green roofs must be a good thing.

As well as the green roof, there is a lot of vertical planting in evidence this year. Unlike green roofs there aren’t yet (m)any commercially available systems to support vertical planting - this is quite a challenge as the system has to be strong enough to support a considerable weight, has to contain sufficient growing medium for the plants and then has to be able to deliver the required amount of water to all of the plants without leaving the ones at the top parched and the ones at the bottom drenched. Perhaps, despite all our misgivings at the top of this post, this shows how Chelsea can drive the market - if increased awareness of vertical planting leads to increased demand for a commercial solution then we may well see more and more of this technique rather than just resorting to the usual solution of planting climbers.

The old ‘project diary’ page on our website served two purposes - part of it was comment on current issues in the world of garden design and part of it was a means of showing the range of work we’re currently involved in. So, keeping to that tradition here’s a review of some of our current projects.

In Rowledge near Farnham we’re working with a client who has a site of around 5 acres, with just under an acre of this designated as a garden. The client owns their own construction company so our approach to the project has been a little different to normal, with some new challenges arising as the project developed. The client is building a new house on the site, which also involves renovating a couple of old barns to include in the living accomodation. The site itself is quite steeply sloping with a stream running through the bottom of the valley and beautiful rural surroundings. Construction of the garden began at the beginning of 2008 but has been held up by the wet weather (the site is on heavy clay), but the main structure of the garden is now nearing completion. Pure Garden Design was recently instructed to proceed with the planting plan for the site, and we hope that some of the planting can be carried out before the summer.

At the opposite end of the scale we’re working on a small contemporary courtyard design for a new build house in Sussex (the case study is on our website). This has been an interesting project as the client was buying one of a pair of houses from a developer. The garden space is only 9m by 5m so the client was keen to get this right, and commissioned Pure Garden Design to develop a scheme. Access to the back garden would be limited once the house was complete so the client asked the property developer to undertake some of the initial construction work - the developer liked the design so much that he then commissioned us to produce a separate scheme for the other house. The clients suspended the work in the garden whilst they were settling in but now we are preparing the planting scheme with the intention that the garden is finished in time for the client’s birthday party this summer.

In Weybridge we are working on the 1/3 acre garden that surrounds a classic early 20th century tile hung house. The garden is taking cues from the era of Jekyll and Lutyens while providing for a modern 21st century lifestyle. The scheme balances formality and structure such as box hedges with flexible space for the family to dine and play, and of course low maintenance planting which adds impact without taking too much looking after. The first phase of this project is nearing completion, with just the bespoke railings and Hornbeam hedge to lift the property’s frontage awaiting completion in May.

We have two projects live in Farnborough - the first of these is a sloping site which is being transformed into a terraced garden with water linking the different levels. The sketch plan has been approved and we’re now well into the process of tendering and selecting a contractor. The second is a renovation of a tired 60’s detached house - the back garden is about 18 metres square and rises by about 2m along it’s length and 1m across the width. Our proposed scheme includes a generous terrace for entertaining (with integrated barbecue and hot tub) as well as a lawn area for the kids to play football etc. The sketch plan is in the final stages of development and construction is expected to follow reasonably quickly as the building works complete.

In Sandhurst we’re working on a small front and rear garden. The back garden slopes up away from the house and a DIY patio from the previous occupier makes no allowance for drainage. The front garden also slopes steeply making it difficult to maintain, and the steps and paths are crumbling and dangerous. The client’s children are also just starting to drive so there is a requirement for additional parking in front of the house. The initial sketch plan has been agreed but we are now working on options to reduce the overall cost of the scheme to enable the client to build both front and rear in a single project.

Since our website first went live we have been publishing a monthly project diary to give a flavour of the work we’re doing, our design approach and our views on current issues. While this seems to be a popular page with visitors to our site it always took a fair bit of work to maintain, and as we’re not wizards at web coding it was tricky to insert any extra features into the diary.

As a result we’ve taken the decision to move the diary to a blog format as this will enable easier updating (hopefully more frequent than before) as well as making it simple to add extra content such as images or maybe even short video fly-throughs of some of our gardens. Other bonuses will be a full archive of all of the articles and the ability for people to add their own comments.

The first article on budgets is a direct copy of the last diary entry from the old page - this had already generated some interesting comments from prospective clients so we decided that it would make a good starting point for the new blog. We also used to give updates on some of our current projects but these will now be done on an ad-hoc basis rather than formally listing them each month.

Money - in Cabaret they said it makes the world go round, but Pink Floyd reckoned it was the root of all evil.  Either way, it’s a subject that always comes up when we’re discussing gardens with clients.  One thing that we always discuss is the likely cost of the project - and how this compares to the client’s thoughts on their budget.  This is one reason why our case studies specifically include the project’s budget to give some idea of the likely cost before they get in touch with us.  It’s difficult to come up with a precise figure for the garden’s cost at the initial consultation but we can at least make sure that the designer and client are both in the same ballpark.

Very few clients have unlimited funds for their garden so as designers we have to be realistic and work with an eye on the client’s budget.   This has a couple of effects on the design process.  For example, during the initial design of the sketch plan a lower than optimal budget will mean that hard landscaping such as paved areas, retaining walls and steps may be limited and of course there is less scope for things like water features, lighting and bespoke structures.  Once the sketch plan is agreed there are still areas where the budget can be manipulated such as specifying treated softwood rather than a more desirable timber such as cedar or oak, or selecting a different paving material.  We can even split the project into discrete phases for construction over several years - in such cases we recommend that we finalise a ‘master plan’ for the site in advance to ensure that the finished project works as a unified scheme rather than an assembly of disparate elements.

The outcome of this is that we will always work with our clients to achieve the optimum balance of design content versus project budget.  Obviously we can’t work miracles and there will always be a ‘rock bottom’ cost for any given garden, but we’re always happy to discuss options.