A little about Lisa

Design - Traditional and formal to the contemporary and informal.

Background - Creating and designing gardens in the south east of England for several years.

Qualifications - Professional accreditation in Amenity Horticulture and Garden Design with credit at Capel Manor School of Horticulture.

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I love gardens and it gives me great satisfaction to design gardens that make people happy. I draw my inspiration from many sources, from constantly visiting gardens and shows like Chelsea, to reading and researching. Sometimes clients have very fixed ideas about what they want, but mainly they have called me in because they need assistance to crystallise the general ideas they have for their garden. I see each new project as a new and individual space to be designed and try and create a unique design to suit both the client and the surrounding landscape.

I try to use plants that will grow and thrive where they have been planted; to work with nature and never against it. I love native plants and trees, and I do like even the smallest plot to have at least one tree, to bring in a diverse range of beneficial insects and wildlife into the garden.

Once any garden is complete, the client usually has been inspired to keep the garden looking as good as possible. I leave seasonal instructions if needed, and follow up each project after 6 months or so to see how things are going. Occasionally a client will need help with maintenance, but I often find a newly designed and planted garden gives people the bug that I was bitten by!

Clients often ask how long a project will take. The time scale varies enormously from job to job, depending on the size and complexity of the plot. I usually need 4-6 weeks to complete a design from the first consultation with a client, and from then on the build can take anything from 2 weeks for a smallish garden to 2 months for something on a larger scale. .

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The most exciting garden I have done was The Metropolitan Police Garden that I designed for Chelsea Flower Show in 2004 to celebrate 175 years of the Met Police. The garden won a silver medal and received lots of publicity when Sir John Stevens, the police commissioner launched a new Rose that had been specially bred for the show

I also featured in "The Great Garden Challenge" on Channel 4 which was a very interesting and enjoyable experience and an opportunity to meet and work with Chris Beardshaw