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Garden Design Tutorial: Banning the Eraser

Written by Duncan Heather on .

Why Banning the Eraser will Make you a Better Designer In this garden design tutorial, I ban my students from using an eraser! Instead, I encourage them to make mistakes which can then lead to happy accidents.  I have often used the analogy of ‘writers block’ when it comes to designing.  Some [...]

How to Measure A Garden

Written by Duncan Heather on .

Site Surveying: How to Measure A Garden and Plot it on Paper Before you can start designing a garden, you need to know how to measure a garden, then plot it on paper.  In order to do this, you will need to carry out a site survey. Your area measurement should be as accurate as possible, as mistakes [...]

Pinterest Ideas: How to use it in Your Design Business

Written by Duncan Heather on .

How Pinterest Ideas and inspiration is replacing traditional media.  And how we as designers can use it to help both us and our clients define their sense of style.I used to tell my design students to subscribe to various magazines for inspiration, primarily to help develop their sense of style.  [...]

Plant Pots: Designing With Containers

Written by Duncan Heather on .

Almost anything that holds soil could be used for plant pots. Shops stock a vast range of traditional ceramic, terracotta, glass fibre and stone pots, some attractive and some hideous. It's important that they are frost proof, so check those imported from Mediterranean or far eastern countries. Be careful [...]

Garden Images: 10 Professional Garden Photography Tips

Written by Duncan Heather on .

Garden images Tip 1. On cloudless days to obtain the best garden images, try to visit the garden early or late in the day to get the best light. ‘The Golden Hour’ is consider to be some of the best light for garden images and many phone apps such as ‘Sun Position’ by Stonekick tell you the start [...]

How to Design a Garden: Does Form Follow Function?

Written by Duncan Heather on .

Does Form Follow Function?  A long-term and continuing debate has been whether form follows function, or function follows form? Initially, as a trained artist, but novice, student designer, I felt instinctively - and arrogantly - that the functions of the garden could follow its form; in other words, [...]

How to Design A Garden: Nature As Inspiration

Written by Duncan Heather on .

Designing with nature requires the designer to develop heightened awareness. Not just of suitable plants for a specific location, but for the genius loci (spirit of Place).  The climate, prevailing wind direction, aspect, gradient, soil, indigenous vegetation, geology, all affect the design choices.Every [...]

Poisonous Plants: A Garden Designers Guide

Written by Duncan Heather on .

A Garden Designer’s Guide To Poisonous PlantsOn average, two gardeners a year die in the UK as a result of poisonous plants. There are poisonous plants lurking in almost every garden, dangerous to humans and animals alike. Many poisonous plants are far from obvious except to the expert. Those discussed [...]

Website Design For Garden Designers Pt 2

Written by Duncan Heather on .

In the first part of Website Design for landscape and garden designers, we look at your website as a digital portfolio. In this second part, we’ll look at the ‘About’ page and how to market your website The About Page. The About page is an opportunity to show your personality. A brief bio is [...]
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