If you’re looking for the complete garden and landscape design package in the North West, take a look at 4D Garden Design.
Founded by Ian Murray in 2007, 4D Garden Design & Construction offers a complete and comprehensive service, from initial design and consultation through to construction and planting, and even a seasonal maintenance programme to keep it looking picture perfect year round.
Ian started his working life studying Botany, Horticulture and Garden Design at Myerscough College, interweaved with significant periods of work study. Soaking up experience, both business and hands-on practical, by 1999 he was ready to set up for himself. A successful year followed, but his aspirations were not yet satisfied and in 2000 he started a degree course at Manchester Metropolitan University, in Landscape Architecture and 3D Design.
‘After graduating I worked on some huge projects in this area, including a lot of work at Edge Hill University’ he says. ‘But by 2007 I was ready to set up for myself again.’
4D Garden Design now has a team of eight, with six to seven people always on site and a constant presence in the office.
‘Project management is key,’ says Ian. ‘We take projects with budgets from £10,000 to well over £100,000 and what unites these is the focus on planning and time-management. Having someone with skill, experience and the time to research every single detail, while still having bodies on site every day, ensures a completely professional service.
‘We’re not like the usual garden designer, who will produce a design and then bring in third parties to do the landscaping and planting. We do it all. We can then even come back at regular intervals and ‘blitz’ the space, making sure it keeps looking just as we planned. The fourth dimension is time – gardens are organic and grow and change over time, we stay around to make sure this change is going the way we want it!
‘We completed a garden last year in a space that is just 20m x 20m, with a budget of £150,000. The client required a luxurious entertaining space; a glass room extension was installed and bespoke seating area with covered fire pit built using a polished Italian marble slab and custom-made timber benches, which have made-to-order marine standard cushions. The lighting is all recessed and we used polished Dutch concrete paving slabs throughout. The balance between hard landscaping and soft is absolutely vital to the overall success though, so a key component was my use of mature pleached hedging all the way round; I chose ornamental pear – Pyrus calleryana chanticleer – it’s a lovely tree. In spring it’s covered in white blossom, the summer leaves are a deep waxy green and then it produces tiny ornamental pears before the autumn colours kick in. Plus it’s great for wildlife.’
It’s clear that 4D Garden Design can take your hopes and dreams from vague and fuzzy through to precise 2D drawings to 3D reality and then look after the 4D too, with perfect planning and true passion.
