Six Creative Ways to Make a Garden for All Weathers

We don't always have great summers in this country, but that doesn't mean that you have to stay indoors all the time. If you design your garden to take the British weather into account, you can still get a lot of use out of it, even if it's not particularly warm. Here we've put together a few creative ideas for inspiration, so you can get out and enjoy your garden whatever the summer has in store.

Make Use of Nature

Create a natural canopy to protect you from the rain and wind by growing climbing plants, including jasmine or vines, to cover an arbour. This isn't an instant way of providing a shelter, but once it becomes established it will turn your patio or balcony into a beautiful spot that can be used throughout the year.

Build Protection

On a breezy day it can feel cooler than it actually is if you don't have any protection from the wind, but if you can get into a sheltered spot it can still feel fairly pleasant. A wrought iron fence or some hedging can be an easy way to build up some cover around a decking area or patio, which will turn it into a cosy corner even when the wind is blowing.

Get Some Heat

An outside seating area can instantly be warmed up by the use of a contemporary fire pit or patio heater, which can be lit when it gets cooler in the evening or on a cloudy day. There are lots of different options available, so you can choose something that complements your garden, including portable or built-in fire pits and terracotta chimineas.

Put a Roof on It

If you want to create an outdoor room that has a bit more protection from the elements, you can install a canopy or roof above your patio. These can be matched to your budget, such as a bespoke automatic retractable version or a polycarbonate roof, and you could position a timber or wrought iron fence around the space to define it even more.

The Perfect Umbrella

Garden parasols are now much more substantial than the small cheap styles, and you can find some that will offer a great deal of protection from the rain. For instance, you could go for an overhanging style so that it can be moved around the patio and swivelled to just the right angle. This is an ideal solution in the UK, where sometimes you'll want to soak up the sun and at other times you'll need to shelter from the rain.

An Instant Make-Over

If you don't want to spend a fortune on different furniture and accessories for the garden when you're not going to get much use out of them, you can simply use some large colourful floor cushions that you can take inside when they're not needed. Then, when the sun comes out, it only takes a few minutes to transform the space into an outdoor room.