Who this guide is for
- Homeowners booking a garden design consultation
- People with ideas but no clear plan yet
- Anyone wanting more from a designer meeting
- Owners briefing a designer for the first time
Write a simple brief
A brief captures how you want to use the garden, who uses it, and the feeling you are after. It does not need to be polished, just clear about priorities, constraints, and what matters most.
A written brief keeps the consultation focused and gives the designer something concrete to respond to.
- How you want to use the garden and who uses it
- The feeling or atmosphere you want
- Must-haves, nice-to-haves, and constraints
Gather photos and references
Photos of your current garden, including problem areas, and references of gardens or features you admire, communicate far more than words. A small collection of images helps the designer read your taste quickly.
Note what specifically appeals in each reference, as that is more useful than the image alone.
- Photograph your garden, including the tricky spots
- Collect references of looks and features you like
- Note what you like about each reference
Assemble practical information
Basic information speeds things along: rough dimensions, what stays and goes, how the garden is accessed, and anything you already know about conditions. You need not produce a survey, but useful context helps.
Having this to hand means the consultation can focus on ideas rather than fact-finding.
Clarify budget thinking and questions
Being open about how you are thinking about budget, in broad terms, helps a designer propose something realistic. Prepare questions about process, timescales, and how they work, so you leave with clarity.
Honest framing up front leads to a design that fits both your garden and your means.
- Share how you are thinking about budget in broad terms
- Prepare questions about process and how they work
- Ask what the next steps would look like
Design consultation prep checklist
- 1Write a simple brief of uses and priorities
- 2Note the feeling or atmosphere you want
- 3List must-haves, nice-to-haves, and constraints
- 4Photograph your garden, including problem areas
- 5Collect references and note what you like
- 6Gather rough dimensions and access details
- 7Decide your broad budget thinking
- 8Prepare questions about process and next steps
Common mistakes to avoid
- Arriving with no brief or sense of priorities
- Bringing references without noting what appeals
- Withholding any budget thinking entirely
- Forgetting photos of the actual garden
- Confusing a design consultation with a site visit
- Leaving without clarity on process and next steps
When to involve a professional
- Design and any technical assessment belong to the qualified designer.
- A consultation shapes ideas; physical site assessment may be a separate stage.
- What a garden allows depends on the site; the designer advises.
- Costs and timelines vary by garden and design scope.
Frequently asked questions
Questions readers ask about this topic
What should I bring to a landscape design consultation?
A simple brief of how you want to use the garden, photos of your space including problem areas, references of looks you admire with notes on what appeals, rough dimensions, and your broad budget thinking. Preparation makes the session far more productive.
How is this different from a site visit?
A design consultation focuses on shaping ideas and understanding your goals, while a site visit centres on physically assessing the garden. Preparing a brief and references suits a consultation; the designer will advise if a separate site assessment is needed.
Should I share my budget with the designer?
Sharing how you are thinking about budget in broad terms helps a designer propose something realistic for your garden. You need not commit to a figure, but openness leads to a design that fits both your space and your means.
Do I need exact measurements beforehand?
Not exact ones. Rough dimensions and access details give useful context, but you need not produce a survey. Having basic information to hand lets the consultation focus on ideas rather than fact-finding.
Keep reading