Reflections, one year on

April 2022

It’s been a year since I officially started this transition into garden design and I’ve been reflecting back over the past 12 months. What I’ve done, what I’ve learnt and where I may go next. Whilst I may be only 2-3% into my career, a lot has changed and I’m definitely further ahead than I was a year ago.  

What I have done?

Ok so over the last 12 months a lot has happened. Chief amongst these has been: I’ve set up as a sole trader, had my first few paid clients, exhibited a planting bed at an RHS show, finished two terms of design school, got my own allotment (so very happy about this) and had a little shoot in a national newspaper.  

Many of these opportunities have come about through me actively knocking on doors and putting myself out there. Whilst this has been scary, it has also been rewarding. 

What have I learnt about being a garden designer? 

Where do I begin? I’ve learnt that there is much more to garden design and what it takes to be a good designer than I initially thought. Whatever anyone thinks, it’s certainly not all about being in gardens with flowers (although that happens sometimes).

For me, I’ve learnt that being a garden designer is a bit like being a film composer. Much like a good film composer, to be a good garden designer you need to be multi-skilled. Not only do you need to be creative but you also need to have people skills, tenacity, technical knowledge and a knack for organisation in order to convert your idea into reality. It’s a varied profession, that requires someone to be adaptive, responsive and empathetic.

Like a film composer arranges sound, a garden designer must arrange space, materials and plants. You then draw your ideas up on a piece of paper, to be read and understood by others. Like a film score must complement the director’s shots, to be successful a good garden must perfectly complement the client’s lives and the location they are within. Like the right music adds to a good film (who can imagine jaws without those two notes) good garden design tells a story. It weaves together many different aspects to create a deep sense of place and meaning. 

Garden designers do much more than design spaces though. They have to then steer them into existence by being organised, technically knowledgable and personable.  I’ve learnt that to realise your design for a client, you may need to work with a whole host of other professionals beyond the obvious landscapers and surveyors. Architects, many different engineers, tree specialists, conservation officers, ecologists and plant nurseries may need to come together to realise your client’s dream design.  For this, you need excellent problem solving skills.

This realisation for me has been both daunting and liberating. Daunting, as there is so much to learn but also liberating, as it is so diverse and varied. I love learning and have always been curious. I can see clearly that in this profession the learning will never cease which is a very good thing! 

What’s next? 

When I embarked on this journey I knew that I was in it for the long-term. I’ve been regularly told throughout this process that it will take me at least 5 years to grow a stable business in this profession. Things take time, and gardens take time build and to grow.  I’ve been surprised but excited by all that has happened so far. I am certainly further ahead than I was this time last year.

Over the next few years I hope to primarily gain experience. This could either be by gaining more design commissions, working for a more established designer or ideally a mixture of the two.  At the moment my private work has mainly been planting designs, consultant visits and a few garden areas. Besides that, I will be continuing the many lifetimes of work of learning how to grow plants and evolving my design ethos and process. 

I’m not sure what the next few years will bring, but for now I will end with the honest truth that whilst this last year has been an awful lot of hard work for a massive pay cut, I am mentally happier and physically healthier than I have been for a long time. I am excited by working life again for the first time in a long time, and for that, and that alone, I consider this to have already been a success. Where I go next, who knows? But I’m pleased I’m on this road.