In an Urban situation the words being bandied around are functionality, arrangement and appearance.

Essentially landscaping is the complete planning of an outdoor space to achieve the same sort of functionality that we enjoy in the interior of our homes. Amenities like maintenance, privacy and comfort are some of the things that affect the overall concept. All aspects of the property are normally taken into consideration, and most of the time when someone landscapes, they are aware that all the aspects are included and things like drainage start to make huge influences to the overall final design.

Now don’t get me wrong, this is all great as you pretty much have a clean slate to work with and although the cards you are dealt are your starting tools or the fundamentals.

So while you are able to dig and Move Mountains if that is what you are inclined to do, you will always be restricted by some of the factors, like a rock outcrop on the property. Naturally those would be the very features that you would take pains to feature or hide. That is the beauty of doing landscaping from a beginning point of view.

A popular idea that has been around is the concept of creating “rooms” into the designed areas, so you would have a similar concept to the interior of your home repeated outside.

The idea does work well if you are able to spend a lot of time out in your garden – climate allowing.

However if you live in an area that has either a more harsh environment or you tend to have a lifestyle that does not take you outdoors often then your landscaping design would need a totally different purpose.

Very often a great landscape design is meant to be viewed strategically from within the house or from areas where guests enter or leave. I am not going to delve into all the dozens of things that you need to consider when tackling a full landscaping project, as the list and details are all going to be too involved.

What I would like to point out is to use a quote that has stood me in good stead in many of the different design fields that I have worked in, and the words of wisdom are “measure twice – cut once”. The point is for you to be very sure that you have thought out all the little things that will make up the final design of your new garden. Everything needs to be considered, wind direction, different seasons, drainage, plant types, indigenous or not, sprinkler systems, leisure areas, entertainment areas, pets, children areas and a dozen more.

Another factor that you should consider more and more these days is the ecological impact that you are using or forcing onto that piece of land. A garden that is indigenous generally does not need to get extra water as the plants are all acclimatized for your particular area, and this can be a large saving in items like sprinkler systems and your water bill. Naturally you will also get all the correct bird-life and insect life visiting your garden as they will be local insects etc from your area. Finally I thought to add a short list of some of the factors that you should consider when tackling a landscape project.

• Municipal by-laws. Get correct advice on whether you need plans or any other legal requirements.

• Surveyors plans. Get your hands on copies of the properties plans, as this will show you where water, gas, sewage and electrical cables and pipes are. You do not want to uproot any of those.

• Budget. Having a clear understanding of all the costs BEFORE you begin will stop you picking up unnecessary pain later on into the project.

• Focal points. Pre-plan any focal points, water flow areas, wind direction areas and any other factors.

• Future growth. Be fully aware as to how big the trees that you plan into the design are going to grow. Plan accordingly, allowing for the speed of growth and the eventual size that shrub or tree will become.

• Light and shade. Both of these factors need to be carefully considered as mistakes cannot be easily rectified later.

• Drawings. Do all your initial planning on paper, and always look carefully at all the available options. You should never just accept the first option that seems to work. THEN PLAN IT OUT ON THE GROUND. Sorry I had to do that in capital letters, it is so important to try to actually map it out for real on the ground. Many times a massive problem only shows up when you have physically stuck stakes and marks out on the ground. Suddenly you realize that you won’t be able to get your car out of your garage anymore, or whatever.

• Repeat. This is not the chance to do it all again, but a warning to repeat all the steps that you took in the planning to double check that you did all the stuff properly. Cut once remember?

There are many benefits of having trees around us. By visiting www.kingco.co.uk you can learn a lot of things about it. By the way, this website is an online store for garden trees but aside from selling they also provides information about the usefulness of their products. They have photinia information to read. Trees can add beauty to your backyard. They will also serve as protection from heavy winds. Although they will give you headache when there are falling leaves but think of it as exercise when you are sweeping them.

Aside from trees, they also have flowering plants for your garden. Plants that can be put designs. Prices of trees and plants at www.kingco.co.uk are very affordable so you don’t have to worry about it. So, if you are planning to build a garden or planning a landscaping this vacation then visit the website that I mentioned above.