The wish-list is a great place to start when you’re wondering how to create your own little Eden. Revisit the excitement of childhood letters to Father Christmas as you draw one up: this is your chance to go wild.

Brainstorming sessions are useful. Get the family together and make lists, sketch out ideas and search books and magazines for pictures that leap out from the page. Don’t censor your ideas; it’s the leap into creativity we’re after. Later, you will draw up a workable plan, weeding out the impractical and plumping for what’s feasible.

Have a second list for the boring bits, the “needs”, as I call them: the wheelie bin and all those recycling bolt-ons have to go somewhere, after all. Don’t forget the washing line, a home for bikes and toys and a hideaway for the compost bin if you’re going to have one. Forget this lot and they will quickly ruin any new design: a bin should never be a focal point.

Storage is vital. A shed might be necessary to stow tools, toys and garden furniture, but it doesn’t have to look like a second-hand allotment job. Consider dual-purpose benches, for example, that can incorporate storage chests beneath the seat.

Once you’ve gathered all your ideas together, you will need to lose those that simply won’t fit into the available space. Start by prioritising: a seating area may take precedence over space for fruit and vegetables, for example. A built-in kitchen, complete with granite worktops, may have to be sacrificed fore a decent-sized lawn for the children.

Gardens have to be practical as well as pretty. Form should always follow function. Too often, prettiness takes precedence, resulting in a space that’s tricky to use. A functional space doesn’t have to be utilitarian — but it must suit your lifestyle.

If you’re single and a nine-to-fiver, a minimalist garden in which you can chill out after-hours is better than a high-maintenance cottage garden replica, unless you are prepared to put in a lot of work at the weekends.

The most important thing is to have a garden that’s easy to look after. Low-maintenance isn’t a dirty word, and it certainly doesn’t equal dull. In fact, it is the only sensible option for beginner gardeners with little time at their disposal. It’s better to have a simple, gravelled space with a few cared-for, colourful pots on display than a bowling green that needs constant mowing.

Conflict can often arise in family gardens, where many needs and wants have to be met. Parents tend to give gardens over to the children, leaving themselves no space of their own, and all too quickly it looks like a cross between a football pitch and a playground. The secret is to create defined areas for everyone.

Of course, this is easier said than done in a tiny garden — but at the very least, set aside an area for entertaining, a space to sit with a glass of wine while the kids play at your feet.

Essential tools

Arm yourself with some decent tools before you start.

Gloves: thick, good-quality leather ones are best. Expect to pay £8-£12 a pair

Spade: for general work, buy a stainless steel one with a wooden shaft, which can easily be replaced if it breaks.

Fork: not as versatile as a spade, but it penetrates compacted ground more easily. Bulldog spades and forks are my favourite. Get them at good garden centres.

Rake: even cheap ones make light work of levelling soil and help to create a nice, crumbly finish for planting and sowing.

Hoe: hoes are weed assassins and dispense with the need for chemicals. I prefer a flat blade at the end, at a right angle to the shaft.

Trowel: get a really good one, because you will use it a lot. Burgon & Ball make lovely ones that cost about £10.

Wheelbarrow: a must for larger gardens. I’d always plump for a metal one, not plastic. Make sure it is comfortable to lift.

Secateurs: an essential piece of kit for deadheading and pruning. Felco are the ones to use. They are expensive — a pair of Felco 2s is about £30 — but sharpen easily.

Pruning saw: when secateurs won’t cope, a folding pruning saw is essential. Felco has a relatively inexpensive one for about £15

Watering can: old-fashioned galvanised cans are as heavy as lead when full, so plastic may be a better option and will be cheaper, too.

Explore Gardens

• Hampton Court Palace Flower Show

• Chelsea Flower Show

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