Essex Garden Designs

12/08/2025

It's a day too hot for much movement, too hot for tea, but just right for standing in the shade and watching the Crocosmia blaze on in silent celebration of summer.

06/08/2025

SHADE GARDENS 🌳

Planting design? Don’t treat sun and shade the same! Light exposure shapes everything from layout to plant choice:

🌑 SHADE (under 4 hrs/day)

✨ Design Tip: Play with foliage contrast and layered heights. Light is softer, so texture and subtle shifts matter more.

🌿 Planting Focus: Choose shade-tolerant stars—Ferns, Astrantia, Heuchera, Hellebores, Bergenia. Many offer dramatic foliage over flowers.

💡 Key Consideration: Shade often means cooler, damper soil. We use organic matter (Field Compost No 12) to improve it.

🌱 Pro Tip: Light levels aren’t static—observe your garden throughout the day and seasons. Even partial shade changes what thrives!

This front garden was planted in November 2024.

Which garden do you have — sun-kissed or woodland calm?

04/08/2025

🌞 FULL SUN GARDEN

Designing a garden? Don’t treat sun and shade the same! Here's how light exposure shapes everything from layout to plant choice:

🔆 FULL SUN (6+ hrs/day)

✨ Design: Using bold forms and strong structure—sunlight brings out vivid colours and crisp textures. Symmetry and open sightlines.

🌿 Planting Focus: Sun lovers thrive—Olives, Pittosporum, Santolina, Echinacea, Stachys, Agapanthus, Verbena and Erigeron. These plants want sun and airflow!

💡 Key Consideration: Full sun = faster drying soil. Drought-tolerant species and grouping thirsty plants near irrigation.

This garden was planted in April 2025 and is already putting on a show!

👇 Let us know your light level + plant loves in the comments!

31/07/2025

🌺 Entertain in Bloom 🌸
This garden was designed with gatherings in mind — where Rosa 'Gertrude Jekyll', showy Salvia 'Caradonna' and a sea of pink, red, and purple flowers create the perfect backdrop for unforgettable moments. ✨ Whether it’s brunch on the patio or sunset drinks surrounded by blossoms, every detail invites you to relax, connect, and enjoy nature’s best. 🌹🍷💜

03/02/2025

Are you looking forward to summer? The dahlias 🌺 have been ordered for this garden we designed and built a couple of years ago in Chelmsford to add some seasonal colour and we are excited to be planting another part of the garden ready for those long warm summer evenings ...

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Planters from
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27/01/2025

A family garden for a beautiful heritage property in Writtle. We've just presented the garden design and planting plan to our clients who are about to build an extension.

There are privacy issues to contend with but also some beautiful existing trees.

We've included a palette of soft pinks, whites and purples for the planting together with evergreens.

There will be a cooking area, oak pergola with seating and lots of space for the children to enjoy too.

We can't wait to see this one come to life ...

14/01/2025

We love Silver Birch (these are Betula utilis subsp. jacquemontii) at any time of the year - but just now they are at their most magnificent. 🌳

09/01/2025

Sometimes small gardens are a challenge to design but for this family garden in Springfield there was endless potential to create something contemporary.

Working closely with our clients we created modern rendered raised borders with Mediterranean style planting.

Thermo Ayous (an alternative to cedar) cladding was used for the fencing and floating bench.

We are looking forward to seeing the garden complete with furniture and the pergola installed above the hot tub.

With thoughtful design, a small garden can become an extension of your home; another room to be used by all the family.

07/01/2025

Happy New Year!!

Plant of the week has to be this Hellebore caught with a very busy bee! There's a plant for every season to attract the bees, birds and insects.

We are back in the office and working on some exciting new projects.

Now is the perfect time to be thinking about your garden in time to enjoy the summer - it will be with us in no time ☀️🌸🐝🦋🐦

28/11/2024

07/11/2024

A year makes all the difference in a garden. We designed and planted up the raised beds in a garden in South Woodham Ferrers last December, the Alliums started the season off in late May and now in November 🌸🌿🌹.

31/10/2024

We love to find new ways to help our clients visualise their garden design. Photos of the completed garden to follow