Now, creating some type of plan on paper is the best way to cohesively bring all your ideas together. Start with the game plan. List out all the considerations you can think of. These include style, desired plants, practical use of space, drainage, power and so on. Brainstorming at this stage is important. Include as many of the desired elements as you can and then arrange them in order or priority. At this stage, you may eliminate some that now appear superfluous. Putting your ideas down on paper like this opens them up for discussion and helps to resolve any issues between interested parties.

Once the requirements of the landscape are identified, drawing up a layout or sketch plan will give an idea how to fit all the elements into the space available. This can be as simple as a line drawing on a scrap of paper or as elaborate as a commissioned plan from a landscape designer. If you draw the plan to scale, it will give a better idea or how everything fits together. A scale plan will also help with working out quantities once the work commences. A quick way to look at alternative placement options of certain elements such as sheds, play equipment and water features is to cut out paper versions to scale and push them around the base plan until they fit together comfortably.

The big advantage of having a plan is that you have something to keep you focussed on, especially if the project may take place over a number of years. The landscape works need not adhere to the plan completely, but can be more of a guide as to where you are going. Often as parts of a landscape are completed, new ideas or uses come to mind. Allow yourself to adopt these changes.

I was recently asked by the Sunshine Coast Council to develop a plan for a display garden at the Queensland Garden Expo in Nambour. Different groups, including Green Corp workers and council employees, were going to come together to build the garden. Having a finished plan to work from meant that we were able to create the garden in a couple of days, as all the designing and problem solving had already been done.

A major benefit of having a comprehensive landscape plan before starting your garden is the ability to prioritise works to maximise efficiency, saving time and money.