Bold and beautiful

Make them easy to navigate, rather than a negative: part of the garden, not a means to get into it.'

Dress the terrace with a few important pots, not a vast collection of disparate pieces, advises Lynne.

'Use them to make a statement, not an afterthought. Six symmetrically placed large, stainless-steel cubes are in keeping with the scale of the terrace and maintain the architectural feeling.

In them, we planted olive trees surrounded by box plinths, to create a small-scale avenue that directs the eye down towards the rest of the garden.

'The tree goes in first, followed by closely packed baby box plants, tightly clipped with shears.

'If you're mad about pelargoniums, you could equally well plant those in big tubs, but keep a symmetry going - think strong.'

Patio furniture should reflect the geometry of the garden.

'If the garden is rectilinear, follow those lines; if it is curvy, follow the curves.

Lots of garden tables are very narrow, so that by the time the dinner plates are down, there's nowhere to put the salad bowl.

Go for a generous width, as well as something solid that you can leave out round the year without fearing it will fall apart.'

Two horizontal box hedges at the top of the lawn move the eye into the next, central section.

'Even in a small garden, divide up the space; it will feel larger and look more interesting.' Despite lawns being decreed unfashionable, Lynne finds that most of her London clients still want one.

'People like to look out of their windows and see a patch of grass; problems occur when the edges fade into the borders.

'The outline needs to be very crisp. We often edge a lawn with a complementary surface, which makes a practical mowing edge and makes the lawn look like an outdoor rug, defining a floor area.

Link it with the landscape materials you're already using, so if you have large, square slate tiles on the patio, use narrow, rectangular slate tiles around the lawn edge.'

The clients requested a limited border palette of yellow, white and blue, which makes a fresh, pleasing combination for a town garden. 'I used mainly perennials, but kept the planting cohesive by repeating them in clumps along the border, and anchoring them with the occasional box ball in the middle of the planting.'

To supply blue and white, Lynne used germanica irises, campanula, lupins, echinops and Verbena bonariensis, backed up with silvery artemesia.

Day lilies, especially in creams and yellows that glow at twilight, are favourites.

'They flower for ages, many smell divine, and, as they tolerate semi-shade, make a great transitional plant between sunny and shady areas.'

As in so many London gardens, overhanging trees make the back section tricky, but there are better ways to go than planting a few large, boring shrubs, says Lynne.

'Think of creating a terrific focal point. In this garden, we created a light, tranquil spot that looks eye-catching from the house.

There is an island of light-reflecting Portland stone, reached by a footbridge of glass, and a simple slate monolith, with a steel central panel, that has water trickling down.

'As it is a shady site, plants are restricted to box, which looks neat and elegant all year round.

You could also have a woodland area, with lush green ferns and white foxgloves, and, as a central feature, a grove of silver birches, with beautiful white stems.

Or consider a more formal box parterre, inset with white plants. Rise to the challenge of making the back of your garden an asset, not an eyesore.'

Lynne Marcus and partner John Hall are design consultants at Gardens & Beyond and are available for commission on 020 8340 3409. All materials and planters in the garden featured are available from Gardens & Beyond.