As of 13 August 2026, AI can design your garden layout.

What to actually do

1. Hand it to a person

   The route this page recommends

   A person who owns the outcome does this end to end, worth it when the failure is dear.

2. Use a tool built for this

   Second choice

3. Do it yourself

   The distant third

   A chat interface, chat-fluent skill, and roughly 30 minutes until you can act on the result.

   How to actually do it

   1. Open a map or notes app and record the garden's longest and shortest dimensions, the position of the house, boundaries, gates, sheds, trees, drains, paving and any other fixed feature.
   2. Take photographs from the house, each boundary and the garden entrance, and note which areas are sunny, shaded, damp, exposed or overlooked at different times of day.
   3. Paste the measurements, photographs or their descriptions, access constraints, intended uses, style, maintenance level and plant preferences into a chatbot using the supplied prompt.
   4. Ask the chatbot to produce the top-down text plan, two alternatives, planting concept, missing site checks and phased work order in one response.
   5. Copy the proposed zones and approximate dimensions onto your own sketch, then compare every route, gate, seating area and planting bed against the actual garden measurements.
   6. Before buying or planting, check soil, drainage, mature plant size, sunlight requirements and any local restrictions using a garden centre, horticultural reference or qualified garden designer where the consequence of error is significant.

   Prompt

   Design a practical garden layout for this site. Use only the information I provide and label any assumption clearly. Do not pretend to know the soil, drainage, exact sunlight levels, planning restrictions or plant hardiness if I have not supplied them.
   
   Garden location and climate: [UK town or region]
   Garden dimensions and shape: [measurements, including any changes in width]
   Aspect and sunlight: [which direction the garden faces and where it is sunny or shaded, if known]
   Existing features to keep: [house, fences, walls, sheds, trees, paving, drains, utilities and access points]
   Access constraints: [gate width, steps, vehicle or material access]
   How I want to use the garden: [seating, dining, play, pets, growing food, storage, wildlife or other uses]
   Style preferences: [for example, informal, modern, cottage, low-maintenance]
   Plants or features I want: [list]
   Plants, materials or features I do not want: [list]
   Budget level: [low, medium or high, without estimating prices]
   Time available for maintenance: [low, medium or high]
   
   Produce:
   1. A clear layout divided into zones, with approximate dimensions and routes between them.
   2. A simple top-down text plan that follows the stated garden shape and keeps existing features in place.
   3. A planting concept grouped by location, light and purpose, using plant types rather than precise species where site information is missing.
   4. A list of measurements or site facts that still need checking before I buy anything.
   5. Two alternative layouts with the main trade-off for each.
   6. A phased order of work from measuring and preparation through planting and finishing.
   Do not claim that the plan is to scale, structurally safe or horticulturally suitable until the relevant facts have been checked.

   Open it prefilled in ChatGPT or Claude, or copy it into Gemini, which takes no prefill link.