Marking your territory

Above: latest issue

One of the nicest aspects of owning a French home is being able to enjoy the outside space. Not only do many regions in France benefit from a great climate but properties often come with generous plots of land. For keen gardeners this can be a huge plus point, allowing them to grow a variety of plants, trees, shrubs and vegetables. Even if you don’t consider yourself especially green-fingered, arranging the outside space in a practical useable manner will enable you to enjoy your garden to the maximum.

You may be lucky enough to inherit a readymade garden, in which case you can tweak the layout to suit your needs. However, the gardens of most renovation and new-build projects are likely to be a blank canvas and this is an ideal moment to create the garden you have always longed for.

As ever, careful planning is key and the best place to start is by making a wish list of all the elements that would feature in your ‘ideal’ garden. At this stage, do think ‘money no object’. You may not be able to afford everything on the list now, but if you plan the garden carefully, you will be able to add more expensive features later on. For example, you may love the idea of a pool but it might not be feasible at the moment. However, if you decide you are going to install a pool at some point, work out where it is going to go now so that you don’t use the area for something else that could be costly to remove.

This article can be found on page(s) 32 - 34 of the lastest issue

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