Easy Steps to Dream Gardens

Easy Steps to Dream Gardens is an initiative designed to help you plant your own show garden at home. Bord Bia has worked with seven Bloom award-winning show garden designers to create garden designs that are suited to a range of different locations. Each garden design in the series comes with an easy-to-follow planting plan and detailed planting list that can be implemented in your garden according to your available time, space and budget.

Virtual bloom 2021

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7 Garden Designs

Seven designs are based on a garden size of 15 metres x 9 metres and have been designed for different aspects (e.g. north-, south-, east- and west-facing gardens) and include garden plans illustrating a variety of features, such as patios and seating areas. While the designs highlight where to situate these features in order to make the most of the available sun in your garden, you don’t have to invest in hard landscaping projects to create your own dream garden. The planting plans will help you develop your existing space to create a similar look and feel to your favourite garden design.

Headshot of Designer Oliver Schurmann

The Easy Care Garden

Designer: Oliver Schurmann

Though formal in structure, this north-facing natural garden is relatively easy to build and maintain. While many intricate and complex hard landscaping projects are best left to the professionals, some of the hard elements of this formal garden designed by Oliver Schurmann could be tackled by skilled DIY enthusiasts.

  • North facing
  • Easy to build and maintain
  • Shade tolerant plants
Headshot of Designer Linda McKeown

The Entertainer’s Garden

Designer: Linda McKeown

This east-facing garden provides flexible spaces for easy entertaining. This plan guides you on how to advantage of a garden’s easterly aspect by including a patio space where owners can enjoy early morning sun, a sunken patio with dining table that offers an enclosed space for entertaining throughout the day, and a raised platform at the back of the garden that provides a casual space to relax long into the evening.

  • A casual space to relax
  • Naturalistic planting
Headshot of Designer Jane McCorkell

The Nature Enthusiast’s Garden

Designer: Jane McCorkell

Nature enthusiasts of all ages will love this south-west facing garden that is a haven for wildlife. The garden is planted in Jane’s signature natural, organic style, with a wildflower grass area and pollinator-friendly flowers. The shrubs and flowers have been selected to encourage birds, bees and other insects making this space a haven for nature lovers.

  • South West facing
  • Haven for wildlife
  • Suits all ages