We are super happy that you are interested in what we offer!
As promised, you will receive the 10 principles we applied to design a 1.5 million euro garden, which are perfectly applicable to create a tropical holiday resort at home.
As a small bonus, you will also receive the 2 main principles with which you can achieve impressive results within 3-5 years, possibly with a smaller budget.
10 Top Principles for a Dream Garden
First of all. Work with pencil on a floor plan or use a design app! That helps to plan much better with the available space.
1. You can create a sense of depth by using different plant sizes
Very often plants are placed quite randomly in a garden. This often works to decorate a garden nicely with plants, but we want to go for the wow factor with what we do. That is why we recommend creating a depth effect. This means that you have to think about the placement of the different sizes of plants. We recommend: place large plants at the back, with a size smaller around them on the left, right and front. Around that size smaller, a smaller size is placed on the left, right and front. And so you work from back to front with decreasing sizes. It is nice to break up this effect a little by occasionally placing a different size in between.
2. A spot is not immediately used and ready when placing 1 plant, but work in layers
We just talked about the depth effect. But you can also create an enormous size perception by working from high to low. Place a tall narrow tree (Trachycarpus 500-600cm) in the middle, and place lower narrow trees (Trachycarpus 300-450cm) around it near the center. Place lower trees in between (varying width 150-200cm), and smaller ones in between. This gives a very nice spatial effect.
3. Cover the ground with beautiful grasses
Between all the plants, the soil does not necessarily have to be visible, but there is the possibility to color the soil very nicely with tropical grasses. These are winter-hardy, so they can simply remain in the winter, even though they become a bit ugly in the cold period. For this we recommend colorful grasses, such as Carex, Salix integra, etc.
4. Employ gatekeepers
Gatekeepers are narrow tall trees that emphasize a spot, such as an entrance, exit, or a corner. Simply place (matching the rest of the garden) a taller narrow palm tree on a corner, or left and right in front of an entrance or exit. This gives a great emphasizing effect.
5. Color contrast can have a big effect
Colour play is applicable in many areas. Painting, clothing, a beautiful photo.. But also in a garden. Make sure that not everything has 1 colour, but visualise the different colour contrasts. A garden design programme can help with this. We recommend, for example, surrounding green plants with blue or red grasses, or e.g. red cordylines. Be creative!
6. Create a walking path through the tropical lushness
It's about separation. A tropical garden is beautiful, but by separating parts it doesn't become one big garden mass. And with a walking path you can enjoy the beautiful garden more during relaxing walks. Also nice for introductions and business contacts! A quick tour of the garden..
7. Not all mixed, but sometimes kind by kind
It is tempting to let everything grow together, and that also gives a nice jungle effect. But it can be quite nice to use only desert plants in a part, for example, so that it gives a special impression. For example, a corner or island with only Cordylines, yuccas and agaves.
8. For the slightly larger garden, demarcated islands can provide a very nice effect
Working with different surrounding rocks and ground cover can create more separation in the garden. Instead of everything being a plant garden with a path in between, that also creates spaciousness with patio surfaces. There can be tables with chairs, or an open space with perhaps a statue.. Many possibilities!
9. Showpieces remain showpieces that deserve a spotlight
We recommend that in a medium to large garden you should at least have a large showpiece, such as a 300cm Chamaerops humilis, or a 6m Date Palm, or a magnificent Trithrinax palm. This palm is the show stealer of the garden, lights can be thrown on it at night for a truly impressive effect in any garden. An old fairytale olive tree is also very suitable for this effect.
10. Nice effects can be achieved with different materials
Discover which materials are possible to apply when determining borders, floor surfaces and ground covering. Pebbles, larger boulders, wood flakes, gravel, shells, marble, there are many possibilities. Everything has its application and its charm. In garden design programs, this can often be easily experimented with, so that you get a good idea of the possibilities.
Don't have an unlimited budget to bring your garden to the top? No problem, with a smaller budget you can also achieve very nice results! That's why we have written this bonus article for you. It takes a bit more time and work, but then you will definitely have a beautiful garden:
BONUS - Discover the 2 main principles for a great garden in 3 years, on a smaller budget