Once the weather warms up and becomes a bit more accommodating for outdoor activity, attention naturally turns to our gardens. From outdoor lighting to oak pergolas, there are many ways to make your space stand out – whatever your budget or the size of your space.

Lighting

Not only does lighting unlock year-round, round-the-clock use for your garden, but it’s also probably the easiest, cheapest and most effortless way to add some atmosphere.

Simple solar lights in a range of styles can be picked up from any home improvement store – stake lights can be used to frame your walkways and paths.

Solar festoon lights can also be draped along the fences and walls or above your focal points. String lights could also be wound around a garden tree – check out globe lights, too.

Up-and-down wall lighting is another on-trend style for a stylish, atmospheric look.

Of course, there are many other more elaborate to alight your outdoor space – it can be incorporated into fencing posts, along your walkways, decorated on your gazebo or even installed into your decking.

Internal boundaries and themed areas

Is there an area of your garden that holds promise, but currently holds no use? You might want to segment it and turn it into its own dedicated space for relaxation, kids’ games or family fun.

Slatted fencing is one popular method of breaking up your space and creating an internal boundary. Gaps between the slats allow air and light to continue flowing, so it’s not a solid partition. This is particularly suitable for gardens where space is at a premium — it can sit flush to existing perimeters, with the horizontal slats adding the illusion of size.

Decking is another popular zoning method, perhaps in conjunction with outdoor seating, decking, decorative stones and/or cobbles.

To theme your space with the ultimate natural aesthetic, you can also let plants, rambling roses and shrubs do the talking in the form of a living wall.

‘Upcycling’ is another way to theme your garden, whilst adding a rustic touch and burnishing its eco-friendly credentials. Rather than adding to landfill, consider repurposing older furniture, plant pots, wooden pallets, barrels and fencing panels as part of a themed area!

Bee and wildlife-friendly zones

Sadly, bees are vanishing at an astonishing rate. Happily, there’s something simple that we can all do to help arrest the decline in numbers – plant more flowers for them to feed on.

Not only will your efforts benefit the bees, but your garden will get more colour and character. Head down to your local garden centre and grab some quality compost and pro-pollinator plants. The British Beekeepers Association has published advice on the best plants when gardening for bees – think hellebores, salvias and echinacea.

To be less scientific, those bright yellows, oranges and these deep, moody blues are fantastic for attracting bees into your garden.

A wooden bee hotel or house – with holes and tubes that provide shelter for solitary bees – and are a smart garden feature that can be affixed to walls, fence posts or other structures.

A bird feeder or a bird bath is another simple structure that can encourage more wildlife into your garden.

‘Nature scaping’ or ‘rewilding’ – a garden design trend itself – can benefit all manner of other endangered critters, including hedgehogs.

Wildlife-friendly flower beds, Mediterranean-style plants and vibrant plants like Anchusa azurea, Verbascums, Hardy geraniums and Agapanthus ‘Silver Baby’ can help to avoid your space being seen as overly meticulously manicured. After all, imperfect is the new perfect.

Plants can soften your space, as well as add structure.

Great in particular balconies and other ‘tiny gardens’, dense planting schemes turn your space – however small – into a plant-friendly, densely-packed green space.

Garden rooms

Whilst this isn’t something you’ll be able to knock together on a whim, an outbuilding might actually be the perfect, added-value addition to your space.

When fully clad, the results are as beautiful as they are functional. A place for relaxation, a games room, a home office, a home gym – or maybe all of these, if you have enough space.

Gazebos and pergolas

We all want to maximise our space, and a garden shelter is one method to create a year-round, round-the-clock focal point.

Oak-framed garden structures don’t necessarily come cheap – a one-bay oak gazebo in solid French oak will set you back approximately £2,400, excluding VAT – but they surely repay themselves by combining natural beauty, functionality and durability.

If you choose a pergola, you can even channel your inner Ancient Egyptian growing shrubs along the sides and the roof — again, this is about allowing nature to do its thing, creating a wildlife-rich garden.

Decking

As well as maximising its utility, decking helps to frame your space, even if it’s on the smaller side. In a quality timber species – like European Oak, Thermo-Oak, Siberian Larch, or Iroko – you’ll have a beautiful, luxurious and high-performance product that assimilates seamlessly into your surroundings.

Low-maintenance composite options are also particularly popular, especially in on-trend grey colours. If you’d like to learn more, check out our comparison of composite and wood decking.

‘Grow your own’ zone

Considering the importance of reducing plastic packaging and your food’s air miles, ‘grow your own’ is much more than just a trend — it’s a movement. It also ties closely into the ‘rewilding’ theme – just letting your garden do its natural thing.

If you’ve got a larger garden to work with, not only does it connect you with the outdoors, but if you’ve got little ones, it can be an exciting, educational project. This trend also gives you the opportunity to ‘rewild’ your space, adding undeniable charm and character.

Plus you’ll have the spoils to enjoy afterwards. Whether that’s potatoes, tomatoes, broccoli, asparagus or carrots!

To take it a step further, how about chickens – and a continuous supply of freshly-laid eggs? You don’t need planning permission to have chickens in your garden – just a coop and an enclosed run (and possibly the consent of your neighbours).

Creating a special outdoor space?

To enjoy your garden like never before, a new feature might be just what you need.

At Duffield Timber, we stock a range of quality timber decking, fencing, cladding and oak-framed garden structures — all ideal for keeping your outdoor space totally on-trend.

Simply drop a message and tell us a little more about your project.