How to make this seating area more exiting

[Laurasanford111]

Hi all

I have a small patio area with table and chairs, it's not ideal with the woodchip around it, the woodchip is the pathway but my dh measured wrong when doing the slabs so we have ended up with it like this. Anyhow height is needed to this area, so I was thinking of two tall pots with hydrangeas in? Or some kind of climber on the fence? It looks sad now because it's winter but when the raised beds are full of cut flowers it looks nice it's just this patio area looks bland

Any suggestions welcome!

Thanks

Pic

You could stencil the slabs for added interest.

Some clematis on the fence.

Some nice lighting for evening.

Dress the table and chairs (cushions, throws) to make it more inviting.

Clematis are hardy. Cut back in winter they return year after year.

Outdoor cushions, pretty planter in the middle of the table. Moroccan lanterns on the patio.

Grasses in pots.
nice smelling winter jasmine against the fence - can’t remember the proper name

Climbers on the wall I'd do boxes on the bottom and stick in clematis and passion flower maybe a Jasmin or honeysuckle.

Plant pots
don't do hydrangeas they need SO much water.
I think something like a scented salvia would be nice. They grow a HUGE amount and get nice and bushy in a couple of years. They are ultra low maintenance and flower all summer long and smell amazing. Sort of like ribena?

Whatight.also be nice is something like a scattering of verbena along the picket fence just to give it a more organic feel.

I'd paint the fence in a blue colour then plant 2 different colour honeysuckle along the fence and a clematis and a climbing rose in the middle. Pressure wash the slabs the table is on. Plant some tall bamboo grass in a couple of containers because it sort of dances in the breeze. I'd put up wind chimes. Then I'd dress the table with a nice oilskin cloth, add some seat pads to the chairs and a nice bright parasol. You can make this area look really pretty in the summer. You'll need to plant in May to get blooms in summer. I'd spend a bit more and buy the honeysuckles, clematis and roses that are well established to speed on growth. I'd also feed up with a tomato plant feed.

Yes as well as PP s I would paint the fence behind the patio a lovely sage green or pale blue. Then grown a couple of climbers up - confederate Jasmin and maybe a rose. couple of pots maybe. . If you google some on line garden shops sell mirrored things made to look like a window which might look nice on the fence behind the furniture

I wouldn't paint the fence in a colour, but thays because I hate that kind of thing! I'd get the patio finished properly. Make it fit the space properly, not even a path of a different material, all patio.

I'd sand the tables and chairs and refinish them, I'd tart the fence up, but in a neat brown fence colour, so they all match and a colour isn't competing.

I'd go for an evergreen climber. Winter jasmine is a good shout. I'd get some sconces on the fence, maybe some sort of festoon lighting. And then dress the space in the summer with pretty candles, cushions, blankets, etc.

@Laurasanford111 an outdoor rug? plus cushions/planting.

This site has an extra 16% off until tomorrow

https://www.kukoonrugs.com/collections/outdoor-rugs?

It feels a bit exposed. I'd make it feel more snug - more of a defined area / room - by adding some architecture e,g, an arch, pergola or something like that.
Does that garden have trees? You could plant a small tree for effect, which would tie in with the trees behind.

Hello! It has a couple of apple trees but they're tiny, we have ordered an amelanchier but that's small too, I agree with a pergola but we would need posts which would infringe on the pathway, with the kids running about might not be ideal 😔

Italian cypress trees in pots could look very elegant. Agree with architecture. You can get fairly delicate metal archways, if you can find one that stretches between the bed in the foreground and the picket fence that wouldn't infringe on the walking space. You could do something similar with a timber posts but would need to do more ground work.

Failing that you could do a pergola that attached to the fence only and arches over. Will see if I can find something similar.

I said to him about cutting some of the slabs to fit the space he rolled his eyes that was a month ago I'm scared to ask him again, I honestly don't know how he did it like this I should have gone out to check at some point before it was to late 🤦‍♀️ the thought of sanding it down is a ball ache but might need to be done, the fence (and there is a lot of it, long garden) is all ronseal dark oak, someone saif it would make it look bigver as its a narrow garden but i agree they do blend in together ☹️ im going to check out those lights now, thats a good shout thank you

https://images.app.goo.gl/iC2faSNxrRqKKaJn9

@Luckydog7 hello yes if you know of something that I can attach to fence that would be great! It's a south facing garden so would be great to add some shade, ideally I'd like as less stuff in ground as possible as I fear it would get in the way!

A trapdoor 🤣

What do you mean

Sorry I'm a bit slow I get it now 😅

I definitely agree that you need an evergreen climber against the fence and like a PP I would also plant verbena bonariensis against the picket fence to give a bit of height. If it's south facing you've got lots of options.

I'm a big fan of garden lighting too, especially if you can see it from the house.