While interior design trends consistently influence our home decor shopping, outside, garden trends are also gaining popularity, inspiring us to update and refresh our outdoor spaces.
From vibrant planting palettes to heated garden rooms and wildlife-friendly eco products, there's an abundance of ways to easily transform your outdoor space.
Take inspiration from SoGlos's round up of some of the best and easiest trends to try in your Gloucestershire garden this 2023...
Sustainable gardens
Many gardeners have long striven to be more sustainable in their outdoor patches, such as using water butts to save water and hydrate plants chlorine-free, or by creating more diversity when planting beds; but there are lots of other planet-friendly things to try, too.
Choosing ethically- and locally-sourced materials is an easy win and products can be found in most local garden centres and many farm shops. Whereas, seeking out FSC-certified wooden planters, sleepers and timber garden products ensures that items adhere to strict forest sustainability codes, set by the Forest Stewardship Council.
Vibrant colour palettes
When Pantone releases its colour of the year, product and furniture designers get busy creating palettes and products to match. And this is no different for the garden — green-fingered gardeners can take inspiration from colour trends and apply them to their planting.
Try adding darker foliage to provide a backdrop for bursts of brightly-coloured flowers. And for those interested in Pantone's colour of the year for 2023 — it's a deep red-purple called Viva Magenta, which could easily be replicated in flower beds and planters with roses, dahlias and peonies in similar shades.
Wildlife havens
Welcoming wildlife into the garden is one of the best ways to create an eco-friendly outdoor space. Plant lavender and verbenas to attract bees and butterflies; dig a mini pond for frogs; add a little shelter or rake leaves into a corner for hedgehogs; and install insect homes and bird feeders.
And allowing the lawn and borders to go a little wild is not just for May — leaving a little patch of longer grass will benefit insects and bees, while shorter, mown areas will allow birds such as blackbirds and robins to catch worms.
Modern cottage gardens
Traditionally, the cottage garden comprised of a delightful mix of colourful flowers, a vegetable plot, a herb garden and perhaps some free-range chickens roaming on a patch of grass — all naturally wonderful for biodiversity and insect life.
But in 2023, the latest take on the cottage garden does all this and more — increasing biodiversity by introducing different planting zones, removing gravelled areas to create mixed beds, planting compost-rich vegetable plots and much more. All incredible for the survival of insects and wildlife, but also colourful and uplifting for gardeners too, having a positive impact on our own mental health and wellbeing.
Grow your own
Only the tiniest of spaces is needed to grow your own fruit and veg. Or even just a pot or two. And with a bit of vigilance (yes, common garden slug, that's you we're talking about), a touch of care and copious amounts of morning and evening watering, you will soon have a glut of ingredients for dinner.
Easy plants to start growing include tomatoes, courgettes and strawberries — although the kids may eat them as fast as they grow!
Zen spaces
With the well known fact that being in nature improves our mental health and wellbeing, it comes as no surprise that people want to create peaceful outdoor spaces in their gardens.
This could be anything from a sleeper bench placed in a quiet corner to a soothing water feature and a mindful Buddha statue. Anything goes, as long as you have quiet, a peaceful vista and a spot in which to sit. Choosing calming green foliage and natural materials such as pebbles or stone will help install tranquility, avoiding anything too overcrowded or bright that requires a lot of maintenance (unless weeding is your yoga).
Multi-purpose garden rooms
If space and budget allows, a dedicated work or hobby space away from the distractions of home life could be the perfect addition to the garden.
If you crave extra space in the house, a multi-purpose garden room is an affordable way of gaining extra square footage, without the expense or stress of moving home or adding an extension. It could be something as simple as a timber shed, or as big as an underfloor heated summer house with double glazing and power. Whatever the budget or spec, that extra bit of covered space outdoors will open up the garden, making it useful in all weather.
