The Garden Design Proposal

This is the fourth module in the programme. It’s called Garden Design 2.

By the end of this module, you will be able to apply knowledge of design approaches, landscaping materials, plants, and drafting skills to produce plans for a simple garden design proposal.

The module has been created to: 

1. introduce you to the second stage of the garden design process – the garden design proposal
2. guide you to explore a range of materials used for hard landscaping and soft surfaces
3. build your understanding of plants: their growing requirements, features as they relate to garden design, and ways of arranging them to strengthen the overall garden design.
4. give you the knowledge and skills to translate a garden design concept plan into a final garden design proposal for your client.

Time to complete this module 

This module is worth 15 Credits, which is roughly equivalent to 150 hours of learning. For some people it will take a little less time and for others it may take a little longer. Learning time includes reading, watching videos, completing learning activities, processing ideas, discussing what you’re learning with others, and completing the assessments. 

You should aim to complete this module in:

• Full-time learners: 4 weeks
• Part-time learners: 8 weeks.

Assessment outline 

To finish this module you need to complete one assessment: 

LDB04A1: Produce a garden design proposal: To do this you will need to:

1. For your chosen site, and based on your completed concept plan, produce a simple garden design proposal, which must include the following:
   • garden design proposal plan
   • planting plan
   • planting schedule.

Go to the assessment section now and read the full assessment requirements.

We’re here to help! 

Firstly, remember, it’s ok to make mistakes. When we make mistakes we can learn from them by thinking “what went wrong?” and “what can I do differently next time?”

Secondly, we’re here to help! If something doesn’t make sense, or you’re not sure what to do next, get in touch with your Tutor.

This is a short topic which:

• explains what a garden design proposal is and why we produce one
• gives an outline of the garden design proposal development process.

By the end of this topic you’ll be able to describe:

• what a garden design proposal is used for
• the three main components of the garden design proposal
• the five key stages of the garden design proposal development process.

The garden design proposal is a collection of drawings and information that the client approves which can then be used to create the new garden. It can be used as the basis of seeking quotes from landscaping constructor companies or for the home-owner to use to create the garden themselves.

What the proposal includes 

The garden design proposal includes three key parts:

• Proposal plan – shows the whole design in a visually appealing way, using a range of plant symbols and colour rendering to grab the client’s attention. Its main purpose is to get the client to enthusiastically approve the final design, so it needs to look good.
• Planting plan – is a pen drawing (it isn’t rendered) that sets out what plants go where. It uses reference codes for all plants and indicates how many are needed in each group. 
• Planting schedule – gives a brief description of each plant species, the code assigned to it and the total number of these plants needed for this garden.

Depending on the size and shape of the site, and the size of the paper the planting plan is drawn on, the planting schedule may be:

• included on the planting plan, or
• provided as a separate page.

Click the following link to download the garden design proposal for the Martin Garden: 
Martin Garden Design Proposal.

To get from the concept plan to the proposal, we work through the following key steps:

1. Refine the design: 
   • incorporate client feedback on the concept plan
   • decide on the materials used for ground surfaces and structures
   • refine the design to respond to these material choices.
2. Select and arrange plants using recognised planting design approaches.
3. Draw up the planting plan to show what plants go where.
4. Write up the planting schedule to describe the plants specified in the planting plan and indicate how many of each are needed.
5. Draw up the proposal plan and render it to make it attractive.

Next we are going to learn about landscaping materials. This will help us decide what materials we will use for the ground surfaces and structures in our garden design proposal.