Top Tips To Make The Most Of A Small Garden Space - Even In Winter

New insight from over-50’s property specialists, Quickmove Properties, reveals how to make the most of a small garden, as they reveal the winner of the Park Home Gardener of the Year 2024, with this year’s winner demonstrating that limited space doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice creativity or beauty.

Vertical gardening techniques

When you’re short of square footage and ground space is limited, it’s time to start growing your garden vertically. Wall-mounted planters and trellises allow you to grow flowers and plants upwards rather than outwards, and hanging baskets are ideal for adding splashes of colour without taking up any floor space.

Start by planting some climbing plants, such as ivy, clematis, or even roses, all of which are perfect for covering walls, fences, and trellises. You can even plant some herbs for your kitchen which will happily grow on vertical tiers on shelves.

Multi-functional furniture

In a small garden, too much furniture can make it feel cluttered. So furniture that has multiple purposes can be a great help. For example, look for benches with built-in storage space, tables that can double as work surfaces for gardening or food prep. If you can’t find multi-function pieces, opt for foldable chairs and tables that easily be tucked away when not being used.

Large space illusions

There are a number of ways to make a small garden look and feel more spacious than it is. Mirrors are a common solution, but blended fence colours, clever use of lighting, and segmentation can also create the illusion of space.

Choose cooler colours

When adding colour to a small garden, opting for cooler tones of purple and blue will make the space feel larger than it is, while warm tones like reds and oranges can make everything feel more close-in.

Don’t waste corner space

Corners are easy to neglect in a garden. We often use them to store tools, etc, that have nowhere else to live. But making proper use of the corners creates more space and more opportunities to add character to the garden. Consider filling corners with eye-catching plants, or L-shaped benches to make use of every available inch of space.

Long-season planting

When you’ve got limited planting space, it doesn’t make sense to go for plants and flowers that only grow during short stretches of the year. Instead, go for evergreens and species that have long flowering seasons so they bring beauty to your garden for as much time as possible.

Quickmove’s Park Home Gardener of the Year 2024

In need of some inspiration? Specialists in bungalow-style park homes Quickmove Properties have just announced the winner of their Park Home Gardener of the Year 2024, sponsored by Towergate Insurance. June and Phillip from Dales View Park in Lancashire have been awarded the coveted golden trowel for their diverse creation that wowed the judges from the park home industry.

June commented:
“When we moved to the park in 1999 the outdoor space was just trees and rocks. After the conservatory was added, Phillip got to work laying the patio, building a deck and digging a six foot hole for the Koi pond.

He’s done all the landscaping while I do the gardening. It looks like it might be a lot of work but actually it's mainly maintenance like pruning and dead-heading as most plants come every year.”

One clever trick used by the couple to make the garden look larger is the placement of mirrors on the fence in the patio dining area. These large mirrors are in fact bedroom wardrobe doors, repurposed and installed by Phillip.

June says she loves her garden and you can see why, from the relaxing deck area with colourful pots and tubs to the bank of perennials, enormous Gunnera and ivy that stretches up the top of the hill.

Phillip added:
“Very few people know what we have! Unless you come through the gate you wouldn’t know there’s a garden like this here.”

Other notable features include an elaborate water circulation system to keep the Koi pond healthy, and a hillside patio positioned on a vantage point high above the park to enjoy the morning sunshine. It also houses a dovecote where doves sometimes nest three times a year. The garden attracts a wide range of wildlife including a regular owl visitor which keeps watch over the fish.

June says:
“Spending time in the garden is very enjoyable work and we’re thrilled to be awarded the Park home gardener of the year trophy from Quickmove.”

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