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How much grass in a small garden?

#1 · 18th April 2024, 7:14 pm

Is the general rule for a small garden to avoid having too big a lawn in order to make the garden look larger? From what I've read this seems to be a common thing, and I'm thinking of putting in another border but the lawn is pretty large (grew it from seed having shifted tonnes of topsoil!) - I'm not after a redesign by the way just some thoughts on what others think.

#2 · 19th April 2024, 3:58 pm

Quote from Lee Garden Ninja on 19th April 2024, 3:58 pm
Hi @tankboy74
The design issue with small gardens is that enthusiastic gardeners tend to try to cram as many things in as possible. Our brains think that adding a bit more of this will make the garden look fuller and feel more interesting. However, it's usually the opposite. All solid, cohesive garden designs tend to focus on a few things and do them well and at scale. With small gardens, the difficulty is that there is limited space, so what do I mean by scale?
The scale of design features relates to how well they fit and support the overall size and or property. For example, a tiny strip of lawn in a garden with huge borders looks at odds when you look at the scale compared to the house. Conversely, a massive lawn and tiny borders all around the edge also look off as there is no balance. Lots of smaller things can also throw out the scale. So adding lots of tiny plants or super dwarf trees can actually make the garden look smaller as their scale is off, i.e., They look too small even for a tiny urban garden!
The biggest culprit for odd scales and proportions is flower beds. Most people design them at around 60cm in new build and small gardens, which makes them look out of scale. Even in the smallest garden, a 1.2 meter deep border only only one side of the lawn looks better than a 60cm strip all around the edge. Catch my drift?
So with your lawn, yes a smaller lawn can make the garden look bigger if the borders are in scale and at least 1.2m deep. It allows you to properly plant them, see the video below as a guide.
https://youtu.be/h7DfM3xqfR4
The last thing about large expanses of lawns is that they can act as a drift for the eye. So your eyes just drift over them and to the edge of the garden. This means the garden is taken in far faster and therefore visitors lose interest quickly. You could always consider some island beds in your lawn to stop, which makes the space more dynamic.
Do let us know how you get on and post some pictures of the before and after!
Happy Gardening - Lee B

Hi @tankboy74

The design issue with small gardens is that enthusiastic gardeners tend to try to cram as many things in as possible. Our brains think that adding a bit more of this will make the garden look fuller and feel more interesting. However, it's usually the opposite. All solid, cohesive garden designs tend to focus on a few things and do them well and at scale. With small gardens, the difficulty is that there is limited space, so what do I mean by scale?

The scale of design features relates to how well they fit and support the overall size and or property. For example, a tiny strip of lawn in a garden with huge borders looks at odds when you look at the scale compared to the house. Conversely, a massive lawn and tiny borders all around the edge also look off as there is no balance. Lots of smaller things can also throw out the scale. So adding lots of tiny plants or super dwarf trees can actually make the garden look smaller as their scale is off, i.e., They look too small even for a tiny urban garden!

The biggest culprit for odd scales and proportions is flower beds. Most people design them at around 60cm in new build and small gardens, which makes them look out of scale. Even in the smallest garden, a 1.2 meter deep border only only one side of the lawn looks better than a 60cm strip all around the edge. Catch my drift?

So with your lawn, yes a smaller lawn can make the garden look bigger if the borders are in scale and at least 1.2m deep. It allows you to properly plant them, see the video below as a guide.

The last thing about large expanses of lawns is that they can act as a drift for the eye. So your eyes just drift over them and to the edge of the garden. This means the garden is taken in far faster and therefore visitors lose interest quickly. You could always consider some island beds in your lawn to stop, which makes the space more dynamic.

Do let us know how you get on and post some pictures of the before and after!

Happy Gardening - Lee B