Decide On Gardening Time Before Selecting Design

It is quite difficult to imagine gardening to a high degree during winter in the UK.  The ground is generally wet, mud encrusted and will always be cold.  Plants do not take kindly to cold clay – any more than the gardener does.  It is therefore quite a good idea to get the gareden planning up to speed in the warmer months.  Deciding how much time one is likely to have available to carry out routine tidying, and supplementing of the soil etc is an important factor.  It is essential to know what sort of soil you have – i.e. if its almost all clay, then there will be much squelching of mud in wet weather but rozen tundra once the frosts set in.  Nothing can be dug in or planted during those periods.  If time is not going to be that forthcoming, or not on a regular basis, then perhaps a simple design with some hard landscaping and a lawn that just needs trimming and edging and with pathways betwen borders and the house.  There are some fantastic garden designers who really understand a family needs for space to play, space to relax and spaces to grow plants and maybe even a few salad and veg crops.