Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
With many residential projects coming to completion in Bahrain and owners starting to move in, many may be wondering how to ensure that their new garden will best complement their new home.
To begin with, look for tips that would help you envision what your dream landscape would look like, and then information on how to make that dream a reality.
Get a professional site analysis of your property and put your design down on paper. If you are having trouble coming up with a satisfactory plan, you may prefer to turn to a landscape designer or a landscape architect for help.
One vital factor to take into account when considering designs for your new garden is water. This may sound obvious but there are many issues to be taken into account including the quantity and quality of the water available. To ensure that your dream landscape is viable you should first:
Calculate your water requirements. It is important to differentiate between turf grass areas and individual shrubs/garden beds as turf will use more water. Most landscape architects, should be able to calculate requirements accurately.
Consider the availability and the cost of your water. Remember that in many cases the water you will use is the same water required for household use and the holding tanks can be small and refilling slow. You don't want to run out of water under the shower because the garden was over-watered!
If there is separate (lower quality) water available for garden use, ensure the species of plants used are salt tolerant and that there is access to 'sweet' water at various times of the year to flush out the salts that accumulate. It is possible to use saline water but careful management is required to ensure salts don't build up or plants will deteriorate over time.
It is a good idea to get the water analysed for quality and recommendations by an agronomist or irrigation water consultant prior to finalising garden designs.
Making a garden from a patch of bare, bulldozed ground may seem daunting, but it is really a splendid opportunity. That barren ground can be converted into anything you like with a little time, creativity and money.
A new property with no landscaping has advantages over a home landscaped by previous owners because you are not faced with correcting other people's errors. You won't have to deal with trees and shrubs that have outgrown their conditions.
A landscape architect's dream project is one for which the planned house is still in the draft stage. That gives the landscape architect an opportunity to take part in early decisions. These choices and many others have a major impact on how well the entire property fits in.
The basics
Whether you choose to work with a landscape designer or not, there are certain tasks, such as amending the soil and solving drainage problems to be tackled before plants go into the ground.
To most homeowners, these efforts do not seem as attractive and rewarding as seeing plants transform bare ground, but they are as essential. It is important to have a master plan to give you a frame of reference and help you avoid heading off on tangents.
The procedures
Each of the following steps plays an important role in successfully designing your landscape.
Identify your vision landscape: List every element you want, no matter how frivolous it seems.
Determine your own style: Determine your tastes and things that would make sense for your property.
Understand the design elements: Proportion, light, colour, mass and texture are the chief concepts of a landscape design.
Develop a concept: Now that you recognise what you want, you can start to make it a reality.
Nishrin has the designs
Nishrin Kothambawala is the Landscape Designer of the Bahrain International Golf Company's (BIGC) Landscape Division.
She graduated from Pune University in India in 1996 with a first class Bachelor of Science degree in horticulture and has since worked on a number of residential, commercial and industrial projects including a 3,000 square foot themed garden in China and the design and development of orchards, concert lawns and plantations in residential developments in India.
Since joining the BIGC team in December 2007, Nishrin has specialised in designing beautiful gardens which can withstand the harsh Bahrain climate.
She has produced design concepts for members of the Royal Family, for home owners at the new Riffa Views community and for hotels and other commercial establishments.
BIGC is the owning company and operator of the Royal Golf Club (RGC) at Riffa Views, home to Bahrain's only grass championship golf course. The company's landscape division was created to complement the core business, utilising some of the specialised skills already on offer from the RGC's team.
