4 Garden Designs That Look Great on Pinterest, but Just Don't Work With the UK's Climate

The unpredictable weather changes can impact your garden and its features, which is why making the right design choices is crucial — here's why

A large garden with a walkway and a mid point with built in seating and a fire pit in the middle. Beside the seating is a large bright green/yellow tree. There is also a view of the house
The unpredictable weather changes can impact your garden and its features, which is why making the right design choices is crucial
(Image credit: Lisa Romerein. Design: Assembledge+)

Designing a garden to meet your needs is no easy feat, which is why choosing the right materials, layout, and plants is key — especially in the UK. Now, as much as we might like to create lush green gardens with multiple levels, zones, and maybe even bold landscaping choices, the truth is, some features don't quite fit the unpredictable weather that often characterizes the UK climate.

Which is why understanding your modern garden is essential to meet its needs and requirements. And after speaking to a garden designer, I've now learnt that there are a few things which simply do not work well in UK climates when it comes to garden design, despite their effectiveness in other parts of the world.

To understand the impact of your garden design and what should be avoided in this climate, I spoke to Melanie Hick, a garden designer based in London. Here's what she had to say about garden designs that may look great, but won't work in UK weather.

An image of Melanie-Hick in a backyard
Melanie Hick

Melanie Hick is a garden designer based in London who creates bespoke garden transformations for people who love style and the planet. Spending her childhood in Australian gardens gave her a deep connection to place and being outside. She connects people to nature and each other with sustainable principles as standard. Her newsletter, Grounding Notes, guides you to how garden design works, and connection to our places and ourselves.

1. Wooden Steps

A garden with wooden steps and wooden decking. There are plants and trees all around as well as a view of a patio dining table ad three chairs around it.

Instead of choosing wood flooring, natural stone might be the best option for optimum durability in rougher climates.

(Image credit: Vintage Garden House Design)

If you've got an urban garden, then this first feature might not quite fit what you're looking for in your garden design.

The first garden design that might look and sound great, but that won't work is wooden steps, according to Melanie. "Wood steps look great, and adding natural materials is always part of my design work," says Melanie.

She continues, "However, in the UK, consider that wood does not last as long as it does in hotter, more consistently dry countries. Consider instead adding wood in seating or furniture or areas that don’t need to be slip-proof."

When designing steps, Melanie says she likes to use natural stone instead. "And make those steps wide and generous and able to double as flexible seating for when visitors arrive."

2. Car-Focused Front Gardens

A large front yard with two cars part outside of a large penthouse in the US. There are two levels and in the front garden are stones flooring laid out with turn between the stone creating the illusion of levels and making the space feel bigger

Unless you have a very large front garden, like this design by Whipple Russell Architects — creating a car focused front yard might not fit your space.

(Image credit: Design: Whipple Russell Architects)

Your front garden ideas are more important than you realize, especially in the UK. From the layout to the overall appearance, many UK front gardens, especially in the city, do not have space for a car-focused front garden. Unless you're living outside of the city with ample open space in the front, creating a front garden for your vehicle is more challenging than you might think.

"It’s really important that we help flooding rain drain away fast, so in front gardens we add more planting and porous, free-draining paving like gravel and well-spaced clay pavers," explains Melanie. "But front garden ideas on Pinterest often apply to huge US suburban plots with integrated garages and space for plenty of cars."

To understand your space better, Melanie says you should "carefully measure your car, bins, and path needs, and go from there."

3. Huge Eucalyptus Trees

The backyard of a home with a large tree that has grown as the years have passed. There are also several trees planted the home as well as smaller plants in front of the home

As beautiful as they may be, planting large trees (especially if you own a home in the UK) can be quite tricky. So, it's best to stick to smaller planting schemes.

(Image credit: Clinton Weaver. Design: CHROFI)

There are a few container garden design mistakes you'll want to avoid, but Melanie says the main one is planting giant eucalyptus trees that won't stand as tall as you might think in the UK climate.

"It’s easy to buy eucalyptus trees in the UK, but you need to be careful with which species and variety you buy," she says. "Many types get absolutely huge. If you visit the wonderful Beth Chatto garden in Colchester, you can see just how grand and statuesque some varieties can grow."

She adds, "Avoid these enormous types if you have less than a parkland and instead choose a dwarf variety as I have done here, with Eucalyptus pauciflora subsp. Niphophila ‘Mt Bogong’."

Embrace container gardening in the right way, and watch your space flourish as seasons change.

4. A Tropical Garden

A tropical garden with lush green foliage surrounding white garden chairs. In the middle of the chairs is a firepit.

Some tropical plants simply cannot hack the UK climate, so ensure you plant with understanding.

(Image credit: Mariko Reed. Design: Tantalus Studio)

Lastly, tropical garden ideas might not be the right fit for the UK climate. Why? Well, it's simple. Certain plants cannot thrive in the UK, and with the constant weather changes that occur here, there are a few plants that may need a little more love.

Melanie tells me, "A client who came back from Singapore wanted to create the look but without the humidity, high rainfall, and high temperatures they enjoy there."

"We had a Pinterest image, but we could not grow and live in the same way as the tropics enjoy," she explains. "What I achieved instead was a series of planting combinations that look tropical because of the variety of leaf textures, but can withstand low winter temperatures and beating sun. Every one of my clients enjoys personal guidance through all these issues and more before I arrive at their ideal garden design."

Remember, it's best to think about the type of plants you choose for your flower bed and aim to create spaces that work in this environment, especially if you're seeking a bountiful garden.

Elevate Your Garden Design


As fun as it may be scrolling through Pinterest for garden inspiration, it's important to keep in mind that some designs won't cut it here in the UK.

But not all hope is lost, we've created a guide for those summer garden design mistakes you'll want to avoid to create a lush and heavenly field this season.

Faiza Saqib
Renovation Editor

Faiza is the Renovation Editor at Livingetc. She previously worked for The Independent as a News Feature Writer, where she crafted lifestyle, entertainment, and news stories. She also worked as an Audience Editor for the newspaper for almost two years. Thriving in the busy newsroom, Faiza also spent her time crafting stories for Sky News as an SEO reporter, where she produced stories based on trending topics. Lifestyle and interior design have been areas of interest for her for some time, and as she advances in this field, she will continue to refine her skills in all aspects of design. Faiza has a background in SEO, social media, and reporting. Her passion for writing goes beyond her work as she loves all things poetry and creative writing.