3x Gold Rules for a New-build House Garden Renovation
Updated: Jan 12, 2023
New-build gardens are my absolute favourite projects to work with as they offer a complete blanc canvas and lots of opportunity for creative layouts.
However, there are 3x important factors you need to keep in mind when you are planning to improve your New-build house garden.
A- careful budgeting is a must!
You would think a garden for a new built house will be relatively simple and easy to work with as there is no existing planting or hard landscaping. Unfortunately, whilst your new-built home will be perfectly ready for you to move in and enjoy right away; your garden..is often the direct opposite. Sometimes with not much more but bare fence boundary walls and couple of concrete paving slabs outside your patio doors.
Whilst that gives you a great advantage for planning your space, it also means that getting stuff in will be more expensive. On average - a new build garden project will be more expensive than work on established garden.
B- focus on structural planting
As you will have a completely empty site with no existing planting, you will need to allocate significant part of your build budget to structural planting like trees and shrubs. Mature trees and shrubs will give the look of well established garden and offer some much needed privacy and sound insulation.
C- Quality of the ground
Majority of new built sites will have challenging ground conditions. Uneven ground level, poor quality soil and builders rubble are just a few of the issues you can expect to come across. So if you have failed to grown plants on your new-build site - one of these factors could be to blame.
Solutions?
- Ask for the grounds to be levelled by the building company right away as you move in. Months after your move they are less likely to carry out any additional work. It may not always be possible but you don't know unless you ask.
- Consider decking over paving. Decking is much easier to lay on uneven ground and if you use Composite decking, it will las just as long. - Mark out your planting areas and dig deep! Introduce lots of new compost and manure to give you plants the best chance to establish and thrive.
