Andrew Staib

If your home has the clean and minimalist design of the modern home, you’ll be looking for a garden that reflects that style.  After all, the garden is an outdoor space connecting us to nature, but also providing an extension of the home in which to relax and entertain. It should be personal yet connect with the surrounding landscape -- while offering a level of gardening maintenance that suits your lifestyle. With thoughtful use in planting and garden fixtures, you can include colour and warmth to a contemporary garden design.   Planting to Add Warmth Modern design often employs stone [...]

This classic garden provides a calm refuge with natural elements that encourage contemplation and symbolize renewal, wonder, and beauty.  Stones are symbols of longevity and the ever-present forces of nature, providing the garden with an anchor. With stones, we can create a landscape for cascading water, with small hills, a stream, and a pond. Image by Drobek226 from Pixabay Water symbolizes continuity with the hereafter. Cascading water, streams and ponds with koi or carp fish providing a flash of gold colour. The cascades also have a practical purpose, as clear, circulating water helps keep the air fresh during summer months. [...]

For many of us, the image of the cottage garden with its warm colours, its links to a time gone by, and its self-sufficiency is idyllic. Yet this style of garden is in reach of us all, however small or large the plot. While the romantic image of the cottage garden may have certain defining features, the beauty within the design is there are no rules. With a little planning and minimal upkeep you can create the garden of your dreams. Features of a Cottage Garden This traditional style of garden was born out of practicality and most people will [...]