Why Planting Design?
If you want a garden don't invest all your resources into the paving etc. A random assortment of plants collected around lovely paving will always detract from any aesthetic value the paving provides. All it takes is applying some thought and consideration to plants and you will avoid this mistake. It will assuredly save you lots of work and money in the long run.
A garden where the plants have been chosen because they work well together and express your tastes and personality makes a space unique and alive. The dead overly landscaped garden costs more and will not enhance your life.
Plants do not have to mean high maintenance. Often the most high maintenance plant in my gardens is the lawn. If you are looking at how to achieve a garden that rewards the efforts you do put in then plants give a much higher rate of return.
There are of course many different 'styles' of planting design: Architectural, Contemporary, Naturalistic and Traditional Herbaceous and Mixed Borders.
I like to draw on all these styles, using them where they are appropriate, sometimes mixing them up. This is the best way to give you what you need rather that impose a particular style onto your garden.
Increasingly my background in Ecology is coming to the fore and informing what I do in gardens. Sustainable planting design is increasingly in demand, as well as planting that makes a positive contribution to local environments. Whilst I know the limitations of the garden in this respect, careful planting can mimic natural systems to some extent. I believe that being 'Green' is compatible with being beautiful.