High quality garden buildings

. As often before, we found ourselves admiring the range of Summerhouses made by Scotts. They are inventive, useful and very well built. In fact the larger ’summerhouses’ make very good garden offices. You can settle down on a hot afternoon to catch up on your emails with a sweeter-than-usual temper.

Tubular green garden seat

. This design is becoming a garden classic. First, it passes the crucial test for ALL SEATING: it is comfortable. Second, the rain runs off the tubes. Third, it has elegance. Fourth, the inward curve on the seat makes it more sociable than a straight seat – you do not have to put such a twist on your neck to smile at your companion.

Terracotta pot with internal glazing

Terracotta is a beautiful material for garden pots. But it has two big problems (1) the plants tend to dry out if you do not water them each morning and each evening in hot weather (2) if saturated in winter then the terracotta tends to crack. This design provides a good solution – the salt glaze on the inside prevents water movement through the terracotta.

Orangutans in garden design

I have never really felt the need for Gorillas in my garden. But there must be many people who have, because this statue is shown year after year at the Chelsea Flower Show. Were I to be given one as a birthday gift, I would place it in a thicket and use clippers to keep open a vegetated window for occasional viewing.

Elegant modern outdoor furniture for garden design

Well designed and modern furniture can be a great starting point for an elegant modern garden design. In buying the furniture one is saying ‘thank you’ to the designer. Then, in the manner of all artists, one can use the designer’s work as a starting point for one’s own garden design.