This is one of those projects when you wonder quite what the designer had in mind. If the gabion had been moved forward to the end of the original/existing brick wall, a much neater finish could have been made. Instead, this strange half panel of brick and mortar has been built, now featuring as the … Read more
This is a classic case of a garden designer deciding to dispense with the need to engage a structural engineer in specifying a part of a larger project, relying instead on their own logic. The primary reason for employing a structural engineer is that they are highly qualified experts in designing projects based on mathematical … Read more
John works for ABC Landscapes, who are contracted to build a Show garden at the Chelsea Flower Show for a sponsor, designed by a well known Garden Designer. John helps out during the build, and lays the paving and builds a dwarf wall as part of the scheme. ABC Landscapes are paid as the contractor … Read more
There are many ways to enter the world of self-employment in horticulture as a second career, from industry, office or factory, and many types of horticultural businesses that may be found to provide a new income stream. Those who leave their previous employ with a large redundancy payment or severance package may have the finances … Read more
Garden building requires many different products and materials, all arriving from diverse sources, suppliers, manufacturers and countries. Compiling the products library for any project highlights the importance of efficient monitoring, buying, selecting, resourcing and delivery processes even in previous ‘normal’ times, and since the pandemic, there is scarcely a scheme that has not met with … Read more
Marketing a Consultancy Practice is not a straightforward case of simply advertising your presence to the world. Although I am sure that a full colour page on the back of The Sunday Times would attract a large number of enquiries, the nature of consultancy is not commercial in the same way as selling a product. … Read more
It may be only a coincidence, but I have received several enquiries from Garden Designers seeking clarification on a number of situations in recent months, all concerning concept plans causing problems with customers misunderstanding the nature of the documents. Perhaps the increase in numbers of enquiries during Covid when homeowners became more interested in their … Read more
There are three categories of Listed Buildings in England and Wales. These are Grade 1 – Buildings of exceptional interest, Grade 11* – Important Buildings of more than special interest and Grade 11 – Buildings of special interest that are worth preserving. Another classification uses the term ‘Architectural Interest’ to describe Grade 11. As less … Read more
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Whenever a scheme calls for a narrow or less obtrusive coping, whilst remaining strong enough to act as a retaining wall, this simple method allows for a 200mm wide block wall with a 100mm upstand as the final section. The final front block is 100mm wide laid on edge, backed by two standard house bricks … Read more
If you have read any of my previous features on motivation you will probably know that I consider employees to be a company’s greatest asset, and that they hold in their hands the success and reputation of the business itself. Recognising this, many businesses go to great lengths to recruit the right person, only for … Read more
There is a growing trend, promulgated by The Royal Horticultural Society, Society of Garden Designers and others, towards the use of reclaimed and recycled materials in garden design and build projects. I have recently written a book titled New Garden Features from Reclaimed & Recycled Materials which includes nearly fifty examples of genuine gardens, many … Read more
Whilst becoming involved in a dispute nowadays is becoming ever more likely, as customers look to the Internet for advice, and to their household insurance policies which provide legal cover in the event of a complaint against a designer or contractor, it is always prudent to ensure that your Professional Indemnity insurance is in place. … Read more
I believe that there has never been a greater awareness by the general public of the existence of Garden Consultants. I know that my consultancy practice has grown three-fold over the last ten years, and not only by my own industry in promoting myself. For many reasons – including promotion by the Press and frequent … Read more
The project was to design and build a farmhouse garden for an ancient building in the Midlands. The site was literally covered in rubble from demolished buildings and various walls, together with a large number of brick ‘overburns’ – blocks of bricks formed as multiple units welded together during the firing process – land drains … Read more
In a large and rambling farmhouse garden, the brief was to design something unusual – almost a folly – as an additional fun element to the scheme. A serpentine wall was constructed using reclaimed materials found on site from old farm buildings had been demolished over many years, and the whole site was filled with … Read more
Living wall/Green walls are becoming more popular with Local Authorities and developers as they are seen as a forward-looking method of creating an eco-friendly solution to problems with over-heating in cities and towns. Designed to reduce noise levels within buildings, and to absorb sound and acoustic energy as it resonates across acres of concrete and … Read more
Statement of Opinion Site Report On the Condition of a Lonicera Nitida Hedge ANN AND ANDREW xxxxxxxxx Page One INTRODUCTION On Thursday, 13th January, I was contacted by Ann and Andrew xxxxxx of 20, xxxx xxxxx Eastbourne BN20 xxxx with an urgent request to visit their garden and provide opinion of the condition of a … Read more
The use of concrete as a lawn edging is versatile, allowing for curves and bends to be formed simply by temporary shuttering (even thin ply may be used), securely fixed into position with short lengths of reinforcing bar to create free-flow and bespoke designs. The inclusion of reinforcing bars, whilst not essential, add to the … Read more
The use of a non-treated timber batten designed for use on a roof, demonstratesthe necessity of constructing a strong edge. Secured only with a 100mm nailpushed into the sharp sand at 1.0m centres, the batten is easily lifted. In thisimage, the grass matting was cut too short for the area, and an additional strip50mm wide … Read more
The reason that Consultants are able to command relatively high rates, either hourly or by the day, is because they are deemed to be expert in their field, able to solve problems and provide solutions to difficult situations and save money for their clients. We are only called upon when someone is in trouble or … Read more
It is all too easy, when discussing projects with a customer, to forget that they may have little or no idea of what you are talking about. As contractors, we tend to live in our own world, using terminology and landscaper’s language as a matter of everyday vocabulary. We use terms such as ‘muck’ and … Read more
Many years ago when I began landscaping, crazy paving and pressed concrete slabs were the fashion. I was born, and still live, in a mill town which is surrounded by hills full of old quarries where the stone for the houses in our town and surrounding areas was excavated. As many of the mills … Read more
Porcelain paving is UK’s most popular paving slab largely due to its versatility. It fits into most surroundings, including old and new properties and the low maintenance of the product has great appeal. However, the laying of the product, and especially the cutting of porcelain, brings all new skills to a landscaper. Some landscapers can … Read more
Introduction ‘Water – an inorganic, colourless, transparent, odourless liquid that forms the seas, lakes, rivers and rain and is the basis of the fluids of living organisms’. As defined by a dictionary, water is also known by its’ chemical formula as H20. Each molecule of water contains two atoms of hydrogen (H) joined to a … Read more
Fans of Top Gear may recall that classic episode when Clarkson et al attempted to destroy a Toyota pickup. It would have been poor TV if, after a series of dramatic incidents the vehicle would have failed to start but of course being a Toyota, it did. No surprise then, as Toyotas are reputed to … Read more
My work as an expert witness, conducting around one hundred surveys each year, examining the reasons for failures leading to disputes and Court cases affords me a unique insight into the myriad causes for these very expensive and fraught situations – many of which are avoidable with due care and attention to detailing on the … Read more
After nearly fifty years in the garden construction business, and not having anything like enough money to retire on a pathetic pension (sounded a fortune when I took out the pension policy!), some years ago, I decided to concentrate on consultancy work, especially Court’s dispute work, which I had been doing on occasion since the … Read more
The following letter was written by Sir Brian Donohue, Secretary of The All-Party Parliamentary Gardening Group 1992 – 2015 and Signed by Peter Seabrook MBE VHM MoH AH FCIHort along with other leading members of the British Horticultural industry. It follows a secret ballot by The Horticulture Week, which found that 76% of respondents wished … Read more
I was delighted to be in the list of Finalists for the third time in 2021 – the other years being 2014 and 2016. It is very satisfying to learn that, even after ten years of writing the same column in The Horticulture Week my work was still held to be of a sufficient standard … Read more
Understanding the nature of Consultancy work is important. Consultants are expected to be willing and able to provide written reports on their chosen subject/s, and as Garden Consultants, that foundation is very wide indeed. The term ‘Gardening’ will include horticulture, design, construction, landscaping, planting, and a host of other ‘practical’ subjects – those that require … Read more
As a dispute expert witness, commissioned by the Court to survey and examine landscape projects that have failed for one reason or another, I work mainly on ‘hard’ landscaping schemes, including artificial grass installations. Failures, disputes and causes for complaint are manifold, although they all have the same problem with quality of finish or foundations. … Read more
For some time now, I’ve been heavily involved with expert witness work in hard landscaping and I see many recurring issues amongst landscapers. These articles are designed to help landscapers avoid issues and costly mistakes. Over the last few years I’ve seen many patios and driveways fail at subbase level. When I started getting into … Read more
The greatest single expense a home owner may make in their lifetime is that of buying a garden. It may seem the simplest thing – to make the decision to have a new garden built or an existing site cleared and a new start made on creating your personal Dream Garden. Certainly, the recent pandemic … Read more
I have been involved in the Landscaping and garden building business for over fifty years, and seen several recessions and examples of Political uncertainty, both Nationally and Internationally, but the coronavirus pandemic has taken a tighter grip of the wellbeing of the Landscaping industry than anything I have seen before. This is a purely personal … Read more
With the landscaping industry improving its standards, best practices constantly changing and new products continuously coming on to the market, it is important as landscapers that you keep up to date with these changes. I was laying Indian sandstone from the mid-nineties until I finished landscaping last year. Although Indian sandstone was considered a budget … Read more
Heel and toe foundations are particularly useful on clay ground. When dry, clay is a very solid material, that becomes very soft when wet and is therefore unpredictable as a base for walling. Pressure from behind a wall – even a dwarf one such as shown here- can force the wall forwards creating a pivoting … Read more
I am not an Employment Agent, although I am a Gardens Consultant who is commissioned on occasion to find a new Head Gardener for a property as part of my brief. Private clients remain confidential; commercial clients include Harrow Boys School, Cadogan Estate, Stansted Park Estate, Wellcome Trust etc, both requiring a different style or … Read more
I live in West Sussex, where clay soil is very common, and as a landscape contractor for over fifty years, I have learned to cope with the manifold problems associated with its variable nature. As a disputes expert witness, I travel across much of Britain, encountering pockets and regions of clay soil of different qualities … Read more
As a home owner, the greatest single expense you may make in your lifetime is that of buying a garden. It may seem the simplest thing – to make the decision to have a new garden built or an existing site cleared and a new start made on creating your personal Dream Garden. Certainly, the … Read more
That old business adage which proposes it costs ‘five times more to get a new customer than it does to keep an old one’ certainly rings true when you analyse just how much companies spend on marketing in a year. But I have often discussed and encouraged clients to sell more to existing customers as … Read more
I have previously mentioned that I recommend maintaining a distinct difference between Garden Advice and Garden Consultancy. This differential is in no way to suggest that one is more important than the other. The crucial difference is in legal weighting. Advice is often provided in passing, walking around a site and answering questions, providing suggestions … Read more
This corner is the lowest point of 100 sq metres of paving, with ACO channel across the two sides and full length of the rear garden. The downpipe is the only discharge outlet for a full length run of guttering serving a large flat roof extension to the rear of the property, so as you … Read more
This paving project turned into a nightmare for the builder. The kitchen/dining area in the house had been fitted out with slate, laid with very tight joints and sealed. The owners decided they wanted to extend the visual area of paving into the garden by means of a patio, using the same sized slabs of … Read more
Here, the paving contractor has agreed to extend an existing driveway/car park, using block paving ‘to match’ the original. Not only does the block not match, either in colour, size or manufacturer (the original being Imperial, pre 1980 product) but no attempt has been made to disguise the additional works by including a soldier course … Read more
Everyone who works as a professional gardener is called upon by their clients to provide them with information and advice, almost at every visit. For the sake of regularity and to establish the definition of a professional gardener, I am referring to an individual who charges money for their time, as opposed to an amateur … Read more
No matter how successful you have been in finding work during the busy months from April to October, the period in between can be difficult when planning for a full work schedule, without careful appreciation of the many opportunities that may not be obvious to those new to the world of self-employment as gardeners and … Read more
I was born and raised on a farm in Surrey, where my father worked in a job that may be described as an engineer cum tractor driver cum machine operator, involved in all manner of trials and experiments. The farmer was happy to allow the Ministry of Agriculture almost free rein to conduct all kinds … Read more
As a consultant, specialising in dispute issues – Court cases – and as an expert witness involving mainly landscaping projects that have failed for one reason or another, I see and hear many things. The Professional Garden Consultant’s Association has a small Specialist group of seven highly experiences landscape contractors who also act as Expert … Read more