Your Garden Made Perfect

I find most garden makeover programmes unrealistic. They no longer relate to the average viewer.
You just know that the majority of them will be neglected afterwards as the householders have no real interest in gardening.

Haven't seen any costing that seemingly outrageous amount but feel there's more satisfaction in changing it oneself. However, many people are unable to do this and a nice kick start may spur their enthusiasm. Hope so.

I enjoy this series as well as 'Your Home Made Perfect', just because the designs are so innovative if not practical. I suspect there will be drainage problems with the swimming pool garden as they only drilled a few holes under the plant beds. The owner had said that it had no 'plug' and needed pumping out regularly.
I have yet to see a garden design with a washing line!

I wonder how these 'fantastic' gardens will look in a few years time as I feel that the owners will just buy in any maintenance required. Will they actually get their hands dirty? Or feel the joy of planting and nurturing a few small plants and seeing them grow to fruition? That's the real joy of gardening for many of us. If they suffer ill health and are unable to do the donkey work that's fair enough but I feel that they're missing out on the real essence of what makes a garden - reward of your labours.

shysal

I enjoy this series as well as 'Your Home Made Perfect', just because the designs are so innovative if not practical. I suspect there will be drainage problems with the swimming pool garden as they only drilled a few holes under the plant beds. The owner had said that it had no 'plug' and needed pumping out regularly.
I have yet to see a garden design with a washing line!

Agree but also, on the house programmes, have you noticed they rarely show a TV in the finished reveal?? Weird.

65k for a garden

I agree. When the garden makeovers are finished, I always say to my DH, that’s all very well but who is going to maintain them. It doesn’t take long to over grow and wedged s grow everywhere. I am happy having a ‘normal’ garden, not designer but one we can enjoy and so can our dogs!

I have been watching this programme and I too was amazed at the £65K garden I couldn't see where the money was there at all. As for the swimming pool redo why on earth they ought that house in the first place I cant imagine but I di like the finished product. We just had some hard landscaping done on our new garden for £2K and we thought we were going mad. The plants and furniture will cost some more and its only a small garden but we intend to spend a lot of time in it.

The £65,000 garden was in a the house the man grew up in. I thought the swimming pool idea was great too, though absolutely not one I would have liked. I think pp are forgetting that gardens grow! No garden is finished.....ever!

I can see why people if they have the money spend huge amounts on their garden. As they rightly say it is an extension of your home which is all well and good. However the recent £65,000 spend on a garden in my opinion was very disappointing. The computer generated design looked great and I really admired it but when I saw it in real life well disappointment can't even describe the way I would have felt if my £65,000 had come out looking like that. The meandering paths around the whole garden just looked like dirt tracks, the water was dirty due to the paths being made of goodness what, looked like concrete dust. I felt for the couple but they looked as if they liked it. Each to their own I suppose.

For my money, Garden rescue would be much better value. Modest budgets and beautiful makeovers. Garden Rescue every time.

These gardens always look superb because they are planted up with fully grown, in bloom shrubs and bushes. There is never anywhere for a compost heap, bin storage, general 'crap' area for wheelbarrows, bits of useful broken trellis, wood etc., that every garden has ( well, mine does) and their dogs never pee or poop on the immaculate lawn! Having said that, I like to watch the programme just to steal ideas, and when they are faced with slopes and awkward shapes, the designs are often very good

Berylsgranny I agree about that garden, especially the unfinished paths. A huge amount to spend, but then to see it is so impractical. The designer seemed to be well known, so perhaps much of the money was spent on his fee.

We said we'd love to see a garden programme showing a revamp on a real budget by someone on the lines of Geoff Hamilton. Make do and mend, adapt what is there, divide plants up to cover a wider area. How to hide bins/working area/mulch with newspaper etc.

Use an old trampoline circle as plant support/use of old mirrors/old washing machine drum as fire pit. etc. Make a fence/garden furniture from old wood/pallets. etc. I know it would not be so dramatic, but they could revisit in 6 months to show how it had developed.

On second thoughts, it wouldn't be glamorous enough for a TV programme.

Sea cliff - No but it might be more interesting!

seacliff, what a good idea! I would love to see a garden designed by Bob Flowerdew. He uses all sorts of reclaimed items like old tyres, washing machine drums and dead freezers on his plot!

The swimming pool project was weird - surely the lowest level would be in shade most of the time, most of the year.
It was also all concrete.

I was shocked when the £65,000 garden was revealed it was awful and looked nothing like the CGD . Much prefer watching garden rescue and similar programmes where the budget is much more modest.

Maggymay

I was shocked when the £65,000 garden was revealed it was awful and looked nothing like the CGD . Much prefer watching garden rescue and similar programmes where the budget is much more modest.

Snap!

I like the ‘girl’ (she seems so young!) that introduces the programme - Angela Scanlon - she’s so enthusiastic! She introduced the previous series, “Your house made perfect”, which also had some wacky ideas. Nice escapism though!