How to Design a Small Garden – @tenseaview

Looking to learn how to design a small garden? This year we are working with a variety of ambassadors who have gardens of different sizes, shapes and even locations! We recently caught up with Steve from Ten Sea View to find out about his seafront-facing garden and get some top tips on what he will be growing this year!

My garden is strange triangle shape, which meant I had to be creative with the space available and also what I could grow. Early on I decided to section it off with different climbing plants and create one space where I could grow peas, strawberries and tomatoes but another area focused on flowers and bringing splashes of colour. The colourful space is filled with sweet peas and jasmine, which not only look great but also smell amazing!

The front garden is seafront facing so is very exposed to the elements, especially in winter! Here we have opted for hardy plants and wildflowers mixed in with small trees and an occasional rose. In this space I have also experimented with pots to work out what grows well, sometimes I start plants off in the sheltered back garden and then move them to the front once they are more established.

The vegetable area is the most valuable and favourite part of my garden. My first experience of gardening began at an early age when my grandmother would take me into the garden and show me growing vegetables. Since then I have always been keen to continue this –  there is something really rewarding about growing tomatoes and cucumbers from seed.

Our garden isn’t the biggest but rather than see it as a challenge we simply changed what we wanted to grow. In our first house we had a greenhouse so I could grow flowers from seed, but now we don’t have as much space I have developed a fondness for climber plants and roses. Both of these maximise space vertically and produce colourful blooms in small areas.

1. Micro Reel – The Micro Reel is a great product for any small garden – it is incredibly compact, so doesn’t require much storage space, but also manages to cover pots and borders.
2. Select Plus Controller – The Select Plus Controller is also going to be incredibly handy when we are on holiday or simply don’t want to spend ages watering the garden in the evening.
3. EasyMix Composter – I am also really looking forward to using the EasyMix Composter, I am trying to make a conscious effort to be more sustainable and minimise our household waste so this product is going to be a real game-changer. The way it converts food and garden waste into something more useful is very impressive and the simplicity of it means even my children can get involved in the process.

Steve’s (@ten_sea_view) introduction to gardening began at an early age, when his grandmother would take him into the garden and educate him on growing vegetables. Other family influences include his father, who would grow tomatoes and cucumbers in their greenhouse and he has fond memories of watching them grow from seeds to vegetables. Steve developed an interest in flowers, which he was able to explore after buying a greenhouse for his first home and he is currently enjoying the process of growing roses and climber plants.