28th May 2010

This time last year I was on site at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, feeling over the moon after we had won a Gold medal and ‘Best in Show’ with the Giles Landscapes ‘Fenland Alchemist’ courtyard garden.

This year we have watched the flower show from a distance as we have been busily involved putting the finishing touches to Norfolk Archaeological Trust’s site at Burgh Castle, near Great Yarmouth, a project that required a total revamp to protect the site for future generations. It includes miles of rustic paths, indigenous planting, shelters and viewing platforms, providing a tremendously satisfying project to work on in the wonderful surroundings of this ancient monument.

But we have still found time to indulge our passion for show gardens, concentrating our efforts this year on producing a garden for the Sandringham Flower Show, which takes place in July. We feel honoured to have been invited to design and build the garden in the Royal Marquee, in association with the Eastern Daily Press, and are fortunate to have an enthusiastic sponsor Marshall Toyota of Kings Lynn. Marshall Toyota will be showcasing the new British-built, environmentally friendly hybrid-powered Toyota Auris at the show and are currently advertising the garden on a colourfully decorated Toyota Prius, another car from their hybrid range.

Pictures from Burgh Castle

The Fenland skaters are one of Giles Landscapes social commitments to the community. One of the regular skaters at Welney, Adam Giles has stored his skates away for the summer to follow the Globebusters (www.globebusters.com) a motorcycling expedition from the UK to Beijing. 15 motor bikes have now reached Kashgar, after having only just managed to get out of Krygystan and into China. The pass (4500m) they had to cross was almost impassable!

Eleven motorcycles fell 40 times, the snow was four feet high either side of the pass and if a bulldozer hadn’t of been they would have had to camp out or return.

Monday 24th May

I’ve just been sorting out another elementof our garden – this year we are using reclaimed and recycled materials again but in a more contemporary way and also mixing them with new materials to show that the two can work together to create an unusual, witty and sustainable garden.

One of the new materials we have found and are really looking forward to using is recycled plastic sheets from www.smile-plastics.co.uk. The company started producing recycled plastic sheeting in 1994 and make their products out of everything from fabric softener bottles and yogurt pots to CD’s and banknotes. The one we are using is made from old gas pipes, food stuff containers and Smile Plastics own factory waste - and it is going to be quite subtle and understated… but for now if you want to find out more about how they make it go to www.smile-plastics.co.uk/production. The photos below show 3 of the wackier patterns – the first one made from mobile phones, the second from whole wellies (lets hope the feet were taken out first) and the third from water and gas pipes…

-Jane

21st May 2010

Nothing is ever simple or straightforward in the world of show gardens and we have had another challenge this week. We have had to change our design (only a little) to make it more comfortable in money terms (i.e cheaper!!!) :O So we have decided to reduce the amount of tiles we are using and introduce another material we came across on our reclamation yard travels. This meant a total re-draw to balance out the areas and work out the new spacings. To be honest it will probably be better this way… possibly…. hopefully!

Meanwhile Angela from Q lawns has kindly sent over some photos of our Enviromat so we can see how it is getting along. .. rather well by the looks of it. … in case you’re wondering, the ladybird is a very integral part of the design – he is called Cecil – he is from Norfolk and his hobbies are fly fishing and eating out.

Your garden is a huge asset. It can be a vibrant, multi-functional extension to your living space, and a properly landscaped garden will greatly increase the value of your home, sometimes as much as 15% (As quoted on www.acheson-glover.com).

 “People will snoop around outside when they see a house for sale-so external view is paramount”. Paul Finnegan, a director at Savills.

 “A cracking south facing garden can increase a property’s value by between 2 and 10 per cent. If you have two houses worth £800,000, the one with a garden will cost £50,000 more.” George Frank, head of estate agents, Douglas and Gordon in Clapham, South London.

 “If you want to increase the equity value of your home a well landscaped garden will increase the value of your property by at least 6% according to a survey conducted by the National Association of Estate Agents.”

 Therefore a well designed garden can add value to your property just as a well designed kitchen or bathroom can. As with all renovations on your home, working out a realistic budget can be a complicated business. The nature of the landscape design can vary greatly, as can the types of materials you wish to use.

 There are a few simple rules to keep in mind when planning to landscape your garden. It’s important to set your budget to reflect the overall value of your property. You need to start off from the most basic principle of working out the capital value of your property and then not spending more than 10% of that on landscaping, or alternatively think how much you would spend on renovating your kitchen?

 A basic guide to working out how much a professional garden landscaping job should cost in terms of construction and garden materials, is based on a formula of 15-20% for soft works (as in planting, soil works and mulching) and 70-80% for hard landscaping (paving, walls, decks, etc.) and the cost of design 5 to 10 %. This does not include maintenance and it can vary according to things like site size, topography and materials used.

Doing the job yourself might reduce these sorts of costs by about 50 per cent, but you should always be cautious of escalating costs in DIY projects because of landscape design inexperience. Even professional jobs can run over the budget, so it’s important to have a well-written contract in place to prevent expensive and unexpected additions.

Contacting a landscape designer will ensure the job is well planned before a spade hits the ground and kept to your budget. However, even the best planned jobs can not budget for unforeseen costs that can emerge once excavation starts.