Worcester Garden Rescue

With her can-do attitude, love of simple gardens

-and decades of experience...

-Hello!

..Charlie Dimmock is one of Britain's best-loved gardeners.

Looking good, boys!

But the new kids on the gardening block are the Rich brothers.

We want to be the brothers that change people's perceptions of gardens.

Winners of multiple medals at the Chelsea Flower Show,

the boys have become known for their dramatic outdoor spaces.

Now, these two different generations of gardening are going head-to-head.

I know they've got a gold medal, but I can come up with a few ideas.

They're meeting frustrated garden owners across the country...

The photos made it look tiny. It is, isn't it?

-I'm sure you've seen larger.

-I don't know what to do with it.

-..and will each pitch them a design based on their needs...

-Wow!

-..and budget.

-That looks really exciting.

-It doesn't look like it could be our garden.

-The winner...

-Hey!

-Ta-dah!

- ALL: Whoo! - ..brings their design to life.

-Hold on, hold on!

-Sweet as a nut.

And the loser has to help them build it.

Oh, I'm getting irritated now with faffing around...

-This is what happens...

-Does he ever get irritating?

-All the time.

..when different styles collide...

-Who chose these?

-One, two, three...

-This looks like your design.

-Yeah!

..to turn garden dreams into reality.

-Wow!

-Open your eyes.

Wow!

It's amazing.

It's beautiful.

Today, Charlie and the Rich brothers will be competing over

a garden that, to its owners, is more than just an outdoor space.

This application's from Andy and Angela. Family home.

They've lived there 20 years,

lots of happy memories of the children growing up there.

-They look like a lovely couple, don't they? Some nice big smiles.

-Yeah.

Retired police officer Andy and his wife Angela

live in Worcestershire with their dog Rudy.

Their grown-up daughter Kelly lives close by.

Well, looking at the garden, I think

it could do with a little bit of something.

Yeah. I think we've lost the inspiration a little bit.

Both Kelly and their elder son John grew up in this garden,

but two years ago, after a long battle with illness,

John died tragically at the age of 26.

And since then, Mum and Dad haven't had the heart to stay on top of it.

They've sort of lost their motivation in the garden,

so they want us to go in and help them be

re-motivated to enjoy the garden again.

What we want to do is to bring a bit of happiness into the garden again,

because we've always had happy times here.

So...

This time, I think we want to do it for us and our daughter,

and it would just be lovely to have the garden looking nice.

Right now, the garden has a featureless lawn,

with an ugly concrete path that leads down to

a prominent row of sheds.

It's going to be kind of easy for us to create something quite special.

-Yeah. There's loads of opportunities, isn't there?

-Yeah.

-I think it'll cheer us up, for a start.

-Mmm.

It'll give us something to look at when we come down, apart from grass.

ANGELA CHUCKLES

The couple would also like the garden to reflect the happy times

they all spent here as a family.

They would love to put in a bit of a garden that sort of

brings back lots of happy memories of their son.

Just somewhere where you can just reflect

and celebrate his life, which would be lovely.

He just loved the garden as well and he used to like his apple pies,

didn't he, as well? Which my mum used to make him.

With the garden meaning so much to them,

they're not skimping on the budget.

£5,000 is going to come out of my pension,

that I've saved all my life for.

Budget-wise, quite good, £5,000,

-although, you know, it's quite a large garden.

-Yeah.

-By rights, we should be able to give them something really special.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-Definitely.

This is a unique challenge for Charlie and the boys,

and they will now compete for the chance to create

the garden of Andy and Angela's dreams.

So they're heading to Worcestershire to see it for themselves.

Ah, here it is!

They're hoping to glean more information that will help them

come up with a winning design.

The boys go straight into the house,

to see if the couple's taste could inspire them in the garden.

Meanwhile, Charlie wants to find out more about what the garden

means to Andy and Angela.

So what do you want from the garden there?

-Because, I mean, it's a nice big space...

-It's a bit too green.

-LAUGHTER

-It's a bit too green?!

-There's too much lawn.

-So you're going for low-maintenance, are you, sir?

-Low-maintenance, yes.

-LAUGHTER

-OK.

-That would be nice, yes.

-I instantly get a clean, modern feeling from here.

-Yeah.

-It's quite light, quite a lot of white as well.

-It is, yeah.

It's a quite nice, uplifting room.

And quite a contemporary feature here with the fireplace.

-Yeah, with the rug... It's kind of quite muted.

-Yeah.

-Definitely got a contemporary feel.

-Let's check out the other rooms.

Let's see if there's anything else.

Charlie is pleased to see that the garden isn't completely bare.

It's great for us to come

to a garden that has got already some planting, it's got a view.

-Yeah.

-It's got some sheds!

-Mm-hm.

Inside, the boys find that, in other parts of the house,

Andy and Angela's taste is very traditional.

Oh, look at this.

-Quite different, isn't it, to the other room?

-It is, yeah.

-Look at that.

-Whoa!

-That's a nice-looking stove, isn't it?

-Yeah, that's my kind of stove.

Quite a contrast to the other room.

So there's that blend between contemporary and traditional.

-And I see there's more colour in this room as well.

-Yeah.

Looking around the couple's house, it's clear that their son John

is still very much a presence.

And they want to celebrate his life in their new garden.

We can actually sit down together now and just enjoy it.

We just need somewhere to sit and relax.

-We'd like a memorial for John...

-Yeah.

-..less grass.

-Less grass.

And I've always wanted a pergola, all the way down,

and maybe just take those slabs away.

We just want you to wave your magic wand for us, Charlie.

It's going to take more than a magic wand to transform this space

into everything Andy and Angela are looking for.

Even for £5,000.

So our rival designers get straight to work.

Each of them has to come up with a design for Andy and Angela's

perfect garden that will work within their budget.

The couple will then choose a winner and the defeated designer

will have to help the winner build the garden.

Charlie appreciates how important memories will be in the new garden.

While the boys have gauged that the couple aren't afraid

of contemporary design ideas...

So, this is our design.

..whose design will they go for?

It's split up into two kind of styles.

One a bit more modern and one a bit more traditional and soft.

This area here is the more contemporary, more modern.

So it's got a linear avenue, broken up by these pockets of planting.

It's got a beautiful avenue of apple trees.

The boys have picked up that Angela wanted

some fruit trees in the garden.

This is a gravel path edged with paviors.

And then, down the bottom here, I've got a seating area with evergreens.

-So it's always going to look attractive.

-Yeah.

And it will draw you down the garden.

Both designers have incorporated a peaceful area to sit and reflect.

That leads you down to this really nice,

quite contemporary seating space.

You'd be walking down into the tree canopy and then you can just turn

right into the nice little spot where you can sit down and relax.

-Is that my shed at the top? At the top.

-Yes.

Yeah. We thought that was the best man cave we've ever seen,

so you don't want to get rid of that.

Charlie has remembered Angela would like some shade across the path.

And this is a pergola area to screen the shed.

So, it's very simple pergola. We've got clipped yew

and then we've got climbers going up over the pergola.

With the planting, we wanted to keep it quite vibrant and uplifting.

-So, it's a space to really enjoy.

-Yeah.

-And it's the feeling that it conjures up.

I feel calm just looking at it now.

THEY LAUGH

Andy and Angela were clear they wanted the focal point of the garden

to be a memorial for their son John.

I was thinking of something like a pedestal with a solar light on

that automatically comes on and, if we planted a lot of scented plants

along there as you walk down to that area,

you'd get all the smells of lavender and maybe rosemary.

What we wanted to do was give this lovely focal magnolia tree to symbolise John.

And it gives you this lovely little space

where it's going to be dappled, you'll be underneath it.

You can see it change, you know, it'll come into flower.

And it really just creates this lovely little atmosphere, really.

The pitch is over. It's now up to Andy and Angela to decide,

for their £5,000 budget, which design will achieve the garden they're after.

This is going to be a tough decision, isn't it?

Well, they've both captured elements that we wanted in the garden.

Charlie's is, um, more a cottagey-type garden,

-with all the planting that she's explained to us.

-Mm.

-And certainly with the raised beds.

-Which is lovely and colourful.

Whereas, the Rich brothers is a little bit formal, isn't it?

-But then again, you've got the...

-All the meadows, which is lovely.

-..the meadow planting.

-That gives a little bit of calmness.

-It looks very peaceful, doesn't it?

And very peaceful.

-Especially the seating area, which I really like.

-And the Magnolia.

-Which is our favourite tree.

-Yeah.

And we've also got the apple trees down the path.

Which reminds me of John with his... Loving his apple pies off his gran.

I think Charlie's has sort of captured the lightness of us, as well.

-It's a happy garden.

-Yeah.

I think it's beautiful. I think they're both beautiful.

-They've both captured both of us, our personalities.

-Mm.

And it would be lovely to have any of them.

We've got to make a decision, though, haven't we?

So will it be Charlie with her winding path,

her pergola covered in pretty climbers, and a pedestal

surrounded by scented plants to commemorate their son's life?

Or will they choose the Rich brothers

with their avenue of apple trees, contemporary patio

and their featured magnolia tree as a memorial to John.

-Hello.

-Hi, guys.

-Hey.

-Hello, there.

-We've made our decision. I have to say, you've captured a lot of elements

that we were after in our garden.

But our decision is...

THEY ALL CHEER

Amazing. Awesome. Oh, thank you very much. Oh, brilliant.

What made you choose our design?

Well, we thought it was what we're looking for

-in a contemplative area.

-Brilliant.

We love trees. So, any trees are good.

But it was so hard, because Charlie captured us as people.

I think that shows how much gardens can really give.

Because there are so many elements to a garden, like you've said.

There's personal journeys, there's moods and atmospheres and spirit, so...

-I hope those are tears of happiness for a beautiful garden.

-They are!

It's just going to make a big change to us.

To be in the garden.

Yeah, it will be a really special place to be.

-But it was a really hard decision.

-We didn't say it would be easy.

-Well, no. I know.

-Hopefully, the build will be nice and easy.

-Yes!

It's clear just how much this garden means to Andy and Angela.

The boys may have won,

but all three of them will need to pull together to build something

that honours John's memory and helps this couple look to the future.

It's day one of the build.

While Harry and David are finessing their planting plans off site,

they've sent in project manager Paul and landscapers Andy and Lee

to start marking out the garden.

This is a big plot, so the boys need to make sure

that the proportions of hard landscaping are spot on.

Too little and it will look like an island in a green ocean.

Too big and it will look like a tennis court.

Andy and Angela were won over by the boy's more formal design,

based on a rectangular terrace in the middle of the lawn

that is accessed by a path from the back of the house.

And to the landscaper's frustration, the boy's design has the new path

in a slightly different place to the old one.

In reality, this path actually runs at an angle,

so, in order for this to look like it does on a plan,

we've got to change the angle of that path

and square it up towards the shed.

So, rather than just put a new path in the lines of the old one,

it all has to be re-marked.

Where to put a garden path and what type is one of the crucial decisions

when it comes to planning a garden.

A path doesn't just have to take you from A to B,

it can be a magical journey,

revealing exciting parts of the garden along the way.

In the stately home gardens of the 17th century,

huge avenues lined with trees were an indication of status.

The trees will be planted further apart further along the path

to make it look even grander.

In the 18th century landscape gardens, meandering paths

were used to reveal new features on the estate around each corner.

Today's private gardens still use this principle,

and different textures reflect the style or look.

Grass or bark paths add to a wildlife garden.

Herringbone paths with plants spilling over

are ideal for cottage or informal gardens.

And sparsely-laid rectangular pavers can give a futuristic touch

to a modern garden.

Perhaps can draw the eye to specific features.

Curved or S-shaped paths reveal the garden bit by bit.

And a long, straight path focuses attention on features or planting.

MOTOR STARTS

In Andy and Angela's garden, before any new path can go in,

the patio needs to be perfect.

But it's not long before Paul realises there's another problem.

The ground is not level.

There's much more of a slope than we initially thought.

Because of that, we're going to have to use a lot of the materials

that are here already to build the levels up.

Fortunately, there's 25 concrete slabs

that had no place in the new garden.

But they do now.

That's the level of the paving, so, by reusing these,

we don't have to use as much hardcore to get the level up,

and it's just a cost-effective way of doing it as well.

Base layers of hardcore can be costly in such big space,

and these slabs will do just as good a job.

All it needs now is a thin layer of aggregate to get it level.

And it's ready for the new patio.

The boys want the garden to be a mix of traditional

and contemporary, so, although the design is formal,

they're using modern tiles to give Andy and Angela an outdoor room.

Meanwhile, the new path has been marked out.

And then cut and edged with wood.

And the Rich brothers are out front,

busy briefing Charlie on the task ahead.

This garden's really got a lot of meaning behind it, hasn't it?

-So I think it's important we nail it.

-But it does put the pressure on you boys!

-I know.

We're confident, aren't we?

They've got this lovely backdrop, so it'll be really nice to, kind of, accentuate that, maybe,

-with a little bit of planting.

-A little bit of planting?

-THEY LAUGH

Looks like a lot of planting to me!

-Come on, then! Stop talking and get on with it!

-All right!

Come on!

The first task for Harry and David

is to mark out the garden's four new flower beds.

Putting in such a long path means a lot of expos landscaping.

So the boys want to flank it with large areas of planting.

We've already got the terracing in the middle of the garden,

and, for us, it's key that all these beds run off that,

so all we're doing now is stringing up that main line.

That's going to create the avenue as you walk down.

Then all the beds come off that, really, so we can start

creating the shapes and, you know, then we can start planting.

But it's great using a string line, because, you know, you can adapt it

and change it without actually cementing anything onto the ground.

With a five grand budget to play with,

the Rich brothers have invested in a lot of plants.

But they want to re-use anything that Andy and Angela already

had in the garden, and Charlie's been put in charge of salvage.

The boys want me to save as many plants from this border as possible,

and there's a couple of fuchsias that Angela really wants to save.

I have to say they're a bit past their sell-by date.

They've gone really, really woody, and although there's some

nice, fresh shoots there, normally what I do is take cuttings of that,

grow those on and get rid of the old plant. The other big problem is

there's lots of perennial weeds in this border,

so I'm going to have to pick over the plants really carefully,

cos there's lots of bindweed, potentilla, dandelions,

which have all got roots that will regenerate.

If you chop them up and plant them, you'll just get more.

SHE GRUNTS

So, the process is - get all the soil off...

..so that you don't transplant

any of the perennial weeds.

And then I'm going to go and put that in the shade,

maybe with a bit of polythene over it

so that we can just plant it straight back in

and it doesn't dehydrate.

As well as rectangular flowerbeds, at the bottom of the garden

the boys are adding traditional curved areas for meadow planting.

And with four beds to prepare,

it's time for David to unleash his secret weapon.

Watch out, men.

The turf cutter.

MOTOR HUMS

-Using a turf cutter makes life a lot easier.

-I mean...

And it does it in a nice, clean strip as well, so when you're

making beds, it leaves that really crisp edge, which is quite good.

You'd be looking at spending about £50 a day on one of these,

but if you're doing a large area,

then I would definitely recommend using one of these.

But it helps to have your older brother following behind

to clear up the spoil.

Meanwhile, Charlie is making progress with her salvage project.

But the plant she's taking out will need a lot of attention.

These aquilegia are just coming into flower,

so it's really not the best time of the year to transplant them.

But it is a case of having to.

So I've lifted them with as much soil on them as possible,

so the roots aren't disturbed.

And all that will happen is, if they do dry out a bit,

you will lose the flowers this year.

But they'll be fine the following year.

With such a lot of turf being lifted

to make the flower beds and meadow areas,

the boys have come up with a nifty plan to re-use it.

But it's not on the design,

so they need to get the green light from Andy and Angela.

There's a lot of lawn coming out of the garden at the moment,

-is that something you're OK with?

-Totally, yeah.

-Definitely.

And it's good-looking turf, so we don't want to throw it all away,

we'd like to recycle it. So, we've got this idea we need to run by you.

-OK.

-It's an idea of creating a hazel hurdle seat, like a turf seat.

I've never heard of that before.

You can see this is the hazel hurdle here.

Charlie's done a great job of clearing

some of the existing plants, the fuchsias and astrantias and things,

which is great. We're going to recycle them, which is nice.

What we'd like to do, if it's OK with you guys,

is cut this in half

-to create this hazel hurdle retaining seat.

-Right.

-And then,

because this soil's got quite a lot of weeds in it, we'd like

-to keep it here rather than put it into the beds we've created.

-Lovely.

Run the turf over it, and that means you can sit down here

-and have a completely different perspective on your garden.

-Lovely.

-Is that OK? Is that all right?

-Yeah.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Brilliant.

The plus of it all, because we're cutting it in half,

we get two! So, what we're going to do, not only have one here,

but we'll have one over there as well, are you happy with that?

-Sounds a good idea.

-Really happy, thank you very much.

-Brilliant.

That's how you keep the client happy.

Give them something extra for nothing.

-Thank you very much.

-See you.

-Thank you.

Having two additional seating areas on the boundary

will give Andy and Angela new perspectives on their new garden.

For most garden owners,

having somewhere to sit is top of the list of requirements,

but it pays to do your homework before taking the plunge.

Work out where the sun rises and sets in your garden.

That will dictate whether you want to sit outside for breakfast

or an early evening drink.

And consider what you want it for.

If it's for entertaining,

then nearer the house may be better.

But for quiet reflection, nothing beats meandering down a path

to your own private bench at the bottom of the garden.

Back in Worcester, David is making a start on the hazel hurdle seat.

It's great Angela and Andrew

are really happy with the hazel hurdle idea.

It's going to make a really good addition to the garden.

This here we picked up for £66 just for the individual piece itself.

I know you're thinking it's quite expensive.

But it is a real skill. A craftsman's made it.

You see this more as a natural fencing,

but we're going to use it as a decorative face to a seat.

It will retain some soil and turf

and create a really nice seat down the garden.

Woven hazel like this has been used for thousands of years

for fencing because of its strength and durability.

Yeah, as you can see, it's a real tight fit.

It's a real craft to put it all together.

It doesn't make it easy to get it apart.

Since the Middle Ages, hazel hurdles had been used for containing sheep

and have recently made a resurgence for garden fences.

Ah! Beautiful.

With the patio finished, it's time for the magnolia tree to be planted.

-It's like a blooming obstacle course around here.

-It'll be worth it.

It'll be worth it when it's in place.

This magnolia is called Merrill

and it has this beautiful open flower which is short-lived,

but really gives a statement at this time of year.

Where are we going, Harry?

-Down by there, shall we?

-About there?

Oh.

Not only will the magnolia add shade to the seating area,

it will stand as a memorial for Andy and Angela's son John.

Nothing nicer than sitting next to a tree in blossom this time of year.

-It's got a nice habit, hasn't it?

-This shape is absolutely stunning.

It's key, when you're choosing your tree at the nursery,

really think about the shape because

the tree's going to grow up in ten years' time.

If you can pick a nice shape now,

when it's mature, it's going to look so elegant and beautiful.

It's nice putting a tree in, it does add a lot to a garden.

Yeah, it is satisfying, obviously.

-And then it should come out, look.

-I can get it out now if you want.

And I've done it now, Harry!

-What are you talking about!

-HE CHUCKLES

Before planting a tree, tease the roots out

to give them a better chance of establishing once it's planted.

-Are we ready?

-Yep.

OK. Down we go.

-Oh.

-Oh, look at that.

-Some could say that was perfect.

It's like you've almost done that before!

HARRY LAUGHS

Are you happy with the angle of it and the aspect of it?

I might just twist it this way a bit without damaging it.

-It's lovely.

-Is that all right?

-Yeah.

Let's get it in now.

Magnolias will thrive in moist soil

so they need frequent watering to establish.

The roots will need a regular soaking

to develop over the first two years.

Meanwhile, the medieval turf seat is coming together

with the help of some 21st-century tools.

Brilliant. I've just attached the half hurdle to some sturdy posts.

Now, all we've got to do is start backfilling.

Getting the right height for the seat requires a lot of turf.

And, with two to build, it's every man for himself.

Oi! Oi, you!

-Oh, Lee!

-CHARLIE LAUGHS

A turf stealer!

Looking good, boys, looking good.

You'd better not make that look better than ours!

Now the path has been edged and a base layer added,

Harry's finishing it with a material that will contrast with the patio.

We're using a limestone bonded gravel.

This is going to compact really tightly together

and it'll almost be a finish like concrete.

So, again, it's going to be a very robust path, it'll last for years.

We've already laid a couple of inches of hard-core

on the base of the path.

We're now going to put the finishing 40ml of the gravel

which will give this lovely contemporary feel.

Back at the fence, they're nearly there with the hazel hurdle seats.

So, we've used the rolls of turf to create a wall

which we'll then fill up with soil and start laying turf over the top.

So, it's literally a retaining wall.

And, because it's turf and it's going to be cut regularly,

it doesn't matter about the weed roots in the soil

because it'll be cut down regularly,

and things like ground elder won't put up with that.

As the next key feature in the garden,

to add some formal elegance to the path,

the boys are creating an avenue of apple trees.

Angela has fond memories of her son enjoying his grandma's apple pie.

-These look gorgeous.

-They look awesome.

-Beautiful avenue trees.

-Yeah.

-Ready?

-Yeah.

-Oh, that's quite relaxing.

-It is.

Quite excited about getting these in.

Well in. And then look at this.

-Wow, where's that going?

-In here.

-It's going to create the avenue down the path.

-Shall we put it down?

-About here, shall we?

-They're quite tall.

Probably one in the middle and one down there, I'd say.

This one's maybe in the middle.

On the design,

these five apple trees will run in a line along the ten-metre path.

But transferring a design from paper to reality can throw up issues.

Quite close as well.

Really get them in.

After seeing the size of the garden with fresh eyes,

the boys have decided it would look better

if they rejig the formation of the trees.

Do we need to have that one at the end or do we put that one up here?

-Have one in the middle and two there.

-One in the middle

and two where Charlie is. Then you block out that.

I've got them. You come here.

And perfectionists Harry and David want them

all in position before they can be planted.

Have a look at that, go back up there.

-How about that?

-Oh, that's nice. Loving that.

Just in time.

Because the heavens have opened.

-Get out of the rain!

-Get out.

-Lie them down!

-Ugh.

Is your jumper anywhere?

Luckily, the rain doesn't last long and the team are soon back to work.

After lifting a lot of turf,

the hazel hurdle seats are nearly finished.

This is the last process now of the turf seat.

We're just rolling on the last layers of turf which is good.

But you may think it looks a little bit high,

as you can see here, there's the hurdle.

That's because the soil is going to compact down,

so we just want to give it an inch or two over that,

so that it stays higher than the hurdle.

Can I just stay here now?

-There's only a bit of planting to do!

-Ah!

-It's the right height, isn't it?

-It's a nice seat height.

You always say, with seats, it's important not to have it too low

otherwise you're hunched up when you're sitting,

your knees are up by your chest.

It's nice to have something a bit more perched, good for the posture.

-It will be a really lovely view down there.

-Yeah.

-Right, I'm going to finish it off.

-Right.

-Hoy, got a slightly damp bum!

Whilst the landscapers plant the freestanding apple trees,

the brothers are complementing them

with another formal feature on the fence.

We've finished with these turf seats. What we're going to do

is plant these espaliered fruit trees in between them.

Espalier, all it means is

that the tree has been manipulated to a framework.

This is perfect for taking advantage of vertical space like a boundary.

These are beautiful,

so they link in with the rest of the fruit trees in the garden.

They're great, because they add that nice bit of structure,

especially to a slightly boring boundary fence.

What we're going to do with these ones,

we're going to leave them on their framework at the moment.

But what we'd advise Andrew and Angela to do is string along

some wire or something the branches can grow across

and, hopefully over time, they will all link up together.

This one here's a plum.

Hopefully over time, the branches will grow over the boundary,

so you can sit on your turf seat and eat some plums.

The espalier technique, as the name suggests,

became popular in France in the Middle Ages

as a way of training fruit either on a frame

or against a warm wall to make best use of the sun.

The ancient tradition continues and, in Britain,

some of the best examples can be found at West Dean Gardens

in Chichester.

Here, a celebrated apple collection is housed in its walled garden.

'People have trained plants ever since people have been gardening.'

And there are a number of reasons to do it.

One, you could utilise spaces which wouldn't otherwise be utilised.

Two, it's a very productive way of growing fruit.

It's easily accessible, you can make the tree the size you want it to be.

Three, it's extreme attractive

and that's the principle reason why I love it.

We've got examples of circular training.

You can train them in S-shapes. You can train them as fans.

It's very pertinent

to the modern contemporary small gardens that most people have,

because you can actually grow fruit

in positions where you might not otherwise be able to grow it.

You couldn't grow a large tree like the one I'm sitting under.

But you could grow an espalier.

It's a great way of creating a boundary.

You could use it almost like a fruiting fence,

so it can be a visual screen, it can be a physical screen.

There are lots of different ways of training fruit.

But the espalier is probably one of the easiest to achieve.

Back in the garden,

David has a less expensive alternative for the espalier.

An alternative to buying a pre-framed one is to do it yourself.

You'd be looking about £10 less expensive than that one.

And all you do is you'd mock up a framework,

you could do it like this one,

or attach some wires across a fence or a wall. That would be fine.

And then you'd look for its natural back.

That would be the flatter face of it, like this one here.

Then, all you do is just bend these, train them down.

And tie it on with these rubber ties,

just nice and firm to hold it there.

The sun is now shining and the build is in full swing.

With all the hard landscaping complete,

it's time for the next phase.

Andy and Angela wanted a relaxed and thoughtful atmosphere

that their old, tired garden was lacking.

To achieve this,

the boys are adding curved meadow areas to help soften the landscape.

They have cleverly come up with not one, not two,

but three different ways to create a meadow.

Harry is laying 20 metres of pre-sown meadow lawn

for an instant effect.

It's the same as laying turf, it makes it very simple to do.

And, instead of having to lay seed,

it's really going to be this instant meadow

which is going to encourage wildlife, birds.

It flowers right throughout the season.

As soon as the winter's over, cut it down,

get rid of all the cuttings

and wait until it comes back in late spring, summer.

This isn't the most cost-effective way of creating a meadow.

You're looking at about £12-£25 per square metre.

At the back of the garden,

Charlie is using a more traditional and cheaper method

to create a similar effect.

Angela and Andrew want to be surrounded

with really lovely colours and uplifting plants.

And meadow plants can do that.

I'm going to create a meadow here from seed.

It's a really good value way of doing it.

Compared to, say, using meadow turf,

which is £12 a square yard up to £25 a square yard,

the seed that you can use is about 60p a square yard,

which is quite different. When you prepare the seed bed,

you need to rake it over, so you've got a nice tilth on the surface,

and remove the big stones and rubbly bits,

so that the seeds have a better chance of germinating.

Meadow plants as well like quite a poor soil.

So I'm going to add this gravel to the soil.

But the other thing is, when you come to sow the seeds,

that is 10g of seed in there.

I have to spread that one gram a square metre.

So I'm going to mix all the seed in with the gravel,

then spread the gravel and you can see where you're going.

I'm just going to sprinkle it over, then give it a light rake as well.

-Charlie.

-Yeah?

-The turf seat's looking epic, isn't it?

-I think it's really good fun, actually.

-Yeah.

-The dog'll love that.

-Yeah.

And the meadow here. I've got a lot of annual seeds in there,

like poppies and cornflowers and daisies.

So that should give them a lot of instant colour this year.

How long will it take for it to establish?

You should start seeing some growth after two weeks quite happily.

And then, in a month-and-a-half's time, it should be out in flower.

-Yeah, it'll look lovely from up there.

-I know.

-It's looking good, looking good!

-It is, oh!

On the left-hand side of the patio,

David isn't taking up the lawn, he's planting through it.

What we wanted to do with this area

was to capture the feeling of a wild orchard.

And then flood the floor with these British native meadow plants.

What we're doing differently with this meadow

is we are keeping the existing turf. That helps save labour time as well.

The reason we can do it is because of this little fella right here,

this is yellow rattle.

This is great, because it's semi-parasitic

which means it actually weakens the root of the grasses that are here.

Over time, that will help change the balance of grass and wild flower

and help these self-seed and establish.

What I'm planting underneath these fruit trees, we've got cowslips,

forget-me-nots, primroses and heartsease.

This will give a really nice, quite vibrant meadow feeling.

These are about £2 per plant, which makes it

quite a cost-effective way of creating a meadow,

because they will self-seed, which is great.

Especially if you've got the yellow rattle as well,

that will really help them establish and take over the space.

The boys have chosen nearly 200 plants to fill their new flowerbeds.

To help create the peaceful atmosphere

Andy and Angela were after,

the boys have chosen flowers that will provide colour and vitality.

120 grasses will soften the hard edges of the landscaping

and add gentle movement and texture.

The sun is setting on the build.

And, with the planting done, the last job of the day

is left to Andy, compacting the gravel on the path

to leave a smooth surface.

Andy and Angela's garden was a flat and uninspiring large lawn

with Andy's sheds as the only feature.

Now it's had a £5,000 transformation.

The boys have broken up the large expanse of lawn

with a modern patio placed right in the middle.

Perfect for socialising and relaxing,

the stone pavers came in at £560.

The couple were keen to get rid of their concrete slabs

and, in their place, the brothers have built

a cool and contemporary gravel path for £350.

Either side, the boys have placed five statuesque apple trees

that will transform the path into an elegant avenue.

The boys have spent £300 on meadow lawn

and just over £1,000 on grasses, perennials and wild flowers.

They may be small now, but in just a few months,

they will flood the garden with colour, texture and movement.

David and Harry spent just £60 on some dirt cheap seating

for the boundary made from hazel hurdles and leftover turf.

And, finally, the most important thing for Andy and Angela

was to have a memorial for their son John.

The boys spent £240 on the couple's favourite tree, the magnolia,

that will provide beautiful blooms for many years.

It's time to find out if Harry and David, with Charlie and the team,

have delivered the garden Andy and Angela are hoping for.

Right, guys, I'd like you to open your eyes to your new garden.

-Oh, my Lord.

-Oh, my goodness!

-Oh!

-THEY LAUGH

-What do you think?

-It's lovely.

-Excellent.

-Oh, it's beautiful.

-The seat.

-Yeah, there's the seats.

THEY LAUGH

Oh, my goodness, look at all that. And the trees.

-And the path!

-Yeah, got rid of the concrete path.

Oh, my goodness. That's lovely.

-Bye-bye, concrete.

-DAVID LAUGHS

-Happy to see that go?

-Thank goodness for that. Oh, yeah.

There's lots of smiles. That's got to be a good sign, hasn't it?

What we've done is interplanted the grasses with lovely perennials.

So, this summer, it's all going to come up

in this block planting.

You'll get so much interest from here.

Oh, it's lovely.

-Oh.

-I can't get over these seats.

-I can't.

-They are brilliant.

-Brilliant.

Might have convinced Andrew about the seat as well.

He's smiling and laughing.

THEY GIGGLE

It might be a bit damp.

I was sitting here earlier.

-Is there room for a little 'un, is there?

-I'm on here, mate!

-It's lovely.

-The dog will love it on here, won't he?

We were saying this will be his private spot.

-A nice little sunny area.

-He will love it.

-Shall we take a look at the end of the garden? Okey dokey.

-Lovely.

-You guys go first.

-Yeah.

It's nice we can actually sit here

instead of on the patio all the time.

Something a bit different for us, isn't it?

One important factor for us was to create this calming space.

-Do you think it has that?

-Definitely.

-It's lovely.

-Beautiful.

There's a really nice view out of the kitchen as well,

-the magnolia tree.

-I was going to say.

-A lot going on.

-Yeah, very. There is an awful lot.

It's beautiful all round there.

-How high will that magnolia tree grow?

-Ten metres maximum.

It's a lovely shape, so, over time, it will only get better.

It's not going to be too dominating for the space.

-Are you getting emotional now?

-Just a little bit.

Tears and smiles and laughter,

that's got to be exactly what you want in a garden.

It's amazing to have been part of this with you guys,

-I know it means a lot to you.

-It's been lovely. It's been really good.

It's been a pleasure having you.

With so many happy family memories for the couple in this garden,

the pressure was immense for Harry and David

to get their new design just right.

-Wow.

-Amazing.

-Lovely, especially the trees and the pathway.

-I thought it was just lovely.

-A great improvement.

It's got its character back again, hasn't it?

Andy and Angela are delighted

and are set to enjoy the garden for years to come.