Blue is the Colour

Well a turquoise shade of blue to be precise! If you want your garden to be bang on trend this year colour experts and trend houses are predicting turquoise as the key colour for 2010.  Voted the official ‘colour of the year’ by Pantone – the world-renowned authority on colour -  apparently turquoise will ‘transport us to an exciting tropical paradise while offering a sense of protection and healing in stressful times’. So even if your bank balance won’t allow for visiting tropical sunnier climes this year, all  you need to do is introduce some splashes of turquoise into your outdoor room, sit back and prepare to feel the force of the tropics!

Lime Orchard - Garden Design. Planting Plans. Garden Build 

GYO or GIY?

You may be experiencing snow where you are but believe us, Spring is well and truly on its way and with it comes the anticipation of getting to spend more time in the outdoor room. And if findings from a recent survey by the Horticultural Trades Association are anything to go by, as a nation Brits are now spending more time in their gardens than they have over the past four years. The surge of interest in the ‘Grow your Own’ movement has undoubtedly played a role in increasing the overall appeal of the garden but there is also a general belief that younger people are ‘connecting’ more with the environment and reconsidering the value of gardening.

But it is not just the ‘grow your own’ revolution that is continuing to gather momentum.  As a nation we are showing an increasing concern for waste or excess of any kind.  This is probably due to the need for many of us to cut costs during the recession but the trend looks set to stay with us having become conditioned to thinking more carefully about our use of time, money and resources.   With this in mind, the need to reduce carbon emissions, pollution and waste, alongside the growing call to action in relation to adopting recycling and reuse in the home has become the accepted norm. This trend translates into more consumers taking a wider interest in recycling and recycling products, the care of wildlife, biodiversity and a renewed interest in garden design and garden projects, arising in the birth of a whole new generation of ‘Green it Yourself’ consumers (GIY).

Lime Orchard - Garden Design. Planting Plans. Garden Build