Phil Hirst Garden Design

We have a tiny, strangely shaped, gloomy area at the back of our house. It was one third concrete slabs, one third artificial grass and one third decking. Phil's design has transformed it. It is now a delightful place to spend time in, and very much a garden - if still a small one. The fencing Phil suggested gives us more privacy but also more light, which is even noticeable inside the house. The garden is at a strange angle to the house but Phil's design incorporates sight lines that draw the eye into our space rather than our neighbour's garden, and his planting plan is just what I asked for: a mix of scents, bird and pollinator friendly, some all year interest, and even a small tree. Phil suggested contractors for the hard landscaping who would be happy to work on such a small site. They were also excellent. Getting the garden done was a really enjoyable process and has resulted in a lovely space that is already giving us a huge amount of pleasure.

We have worked with Phil since he first started, building many of his gardens and seen at first hand how he has developed into a first class garden designer. He has great vision and attention to detail, has a good understanding of build costs and excellent plant knowledge. Very professional and very conscientious, deserved RHS Gold medal winner.

Having just moved to a new house, we wanted the garden to reflect the inside space, especially as bu fold doors had the effect of bringing the outside in and vice versa. With only a modest rectangle of grass surrounded by walls, there was plenty of scope. Phil listened carefully to our ideas and made some suggestions about items we hadn’t dreamed of such as a pergola, lighting and water feature. The final specifications and drawings were comprehensive and gave a great visualisation of what was to come. Phil kept within our budget and there was no fear of costs being 'bumped up'. A detailed tender process ensured we appointed the best contractors and Phil kept an eye on the works, dealing with a couple of minor evitable changes that became necessary once the team were on site. Phil planted out in person and handled a couple ot issues that needed to be sorted out after the contractor finished. So the relationship continued from the very first visit until some months later, and we hope it will continue. I’ve quoted figure for overall project which include the design fees. In short we have been delighted with Phil’s work and hope to keep in touch

We had never employed a garden designer before but, with retirement from work on the horizon and the whole (large) garden looking past its best, we needed a new and improved garden which we could enjoy for the future. I had thought it was a tricky brief and that it could be a difficult process - combining a lot of different aspects - but Phil was absolutely fantastic. He listened to what we wanted, helped us expand and clarify our ideas, added so many which we could never have thought of, and steered the whole process to produce a really beautiful design. And the planting is spectacular! The overall result is a wonderful combination of everything we had wanted, and it all works together extremely well. We are very grateful to Phil for his thoughtful and considered way of working, and also for his designer's eye and obvious expertise. On top of that, for his patience in taking everything through to fruition. We love the garden, and it will be a wonderful place to spend time together, and with our friends and family, for years to come. Thanks Phil!

We set off with a very vague idea of what our new garden should look like. Once Phil had chance to separate fact from fiction, he produced a stunning garden for us which exceeded our expectation in every respect. His landscaping expertise is matched only by his creativity and botanical knowledge and if you're looking for a "turn-key" garden we cannot recommend Phil Hirst Gardens highly enough.

Phil's design perfectly fits the brief we gave him. Our garden is now a joy - easy to maintain, beautiful to look at and totally brilliant - thanks Phil !

We had a tricky plot which was on quite a steep hill. Our brief was to create a contemporary garden space our family could enjoy and would also be relatively straightforward to maintain. We did a bit of a mood board for Phil showing colours end textures we liked and he got on and did the rest. The end result was absolutely stunning and the plants chosen by Phil have been thriving. Phil was a joy to work with and really helped us flesh out our ideas into a flourishing end result.

Would highly recommend Phil Hirst Garden Design. We have never used a garden designer before but would use Phil again if ever needed. Our garden looks beautiful and everybody comments on it. Phil took on board what we asked for and came up with a really good plan. Only a year on now but it looks great.