Architectural design is collegial.
I am told it’s spring. The trees in my garden are showing signs of spring with new leaves appearing. But every year spring is announced and then cold and rainy winter weather returns.
However, everyone is turning their attention to the garden. They don’t stop growing in the winter. Don’t underestimate the value of a well-maintained garden both to yourself and the value of your house.
Gardens are associated with wealthier suburbs. They have established gardens and mature trees. Gardens complete the house. Gardens do cost time and money to maintain. They need feeding, watering, weeding, and then pruning or cutting back. It’s never ending.
We all love nature – be it a walk in a park or a bush tramp, gardens are just a smaller version of nature.
On the bright side, we hear constantly about indoor-outdoor flow. Outdoor flow usually means out onto a deck or terrace in the garden. So now it’s you and the garden, close up.
Screen planting and hedging can give you privacy. A specimen tree can block out that first-floor neighbour’s window overlooking you. A deciduous tree will block harsh westerly sun in the summer but shed its leaves in the winter to allow low-penetrating winter sun. A lawn a play area.
Growing up, mowing the lawn was a weekly fight. I now realise a well-mown lawn hides a hundred sins in an unmaintained garden. Smaller gardens take more effort because you can’t hide the lack of maintenance. They need even more care in plant selection.
Gardens bring colour and scent. They also bring bird and insect life; I love the fat bumblebees. While we have a lemon and lime tree, the best value for us is the herb garden. Nothing beats picking fresh herbs for salads and cooking.
In the winter, the glass in windows look black and cold, especially if it’s raining. By turning on the garden lights, the glass disappears giving you a view into the garden, helping you forget its cold and your stuck inside. Gardens aren’t just for summer.
I would recommend you engage a landscape architect or garden designer. They know the right plants for sun or shade and the height they grow to. For my first house, I didn’t use one and over planted – meaning I cut two thirds of the plants out a year later. Lesson learnt.
paul@leuschkekahn.co.nz
021 894 895
leuschkekahn.co.nz
