How should your garden grow?

Each garden presents its own drawbacks and opportunities. So where to start? We’ve enlisted the expertise of four of Ireland’s leading garden designers - Diarmuid Gavin, Mary Reynolds, Paul Doyle and June Blake - to help you bring life to your little patch of the planet

Paul Doyle: ‘Know your garden designer’s form and style, and choose them based on that’ Pic: Feargal Ward

Diarmuid Gavin

I want to make a change to my outdoor space. Where should I start?

Diarmuid Gavin: ‘Begin by dreaming of what your ideal space would be’

Begin by dreaming of what your ideal space would be. Take inspiration from books, magazines, Pinterest and Instagram. Gather together a real, or digital, scrapbook of ideas, colour combinations, plants and features and refine it to a version which suits your space and is achievable.