Top tips for freshening your garden

One of the many charms of living in the UAE is, funnily enough, the weather. Yes, despite the fact that we live in the desert and during the summer months you could fry an egg on the sidewalk in nanoseconds, Dubai's charm is in braving the outdoors. Even in the boiling months of June to September, we still manage to sit in a comfortably sweaty state by a pool surrounded by rockery, and innovative methods of cooling, from spraying water fans to cooling pipes underneath the tiles. We sit and patiently wait for the weather to get better by October, and then the wonderful al fresco life in Dubai kicks in until May of next year. It's no surprise that landscaping is big business here and, like all things Dubai, is innovative, stylish, and cutting edge.

 For our pools and landscaping special feature, we turn to the top landscaping and pool design companies in the region, to pick their brains and share these pearls with you. Starting with the buzzword that is (rightfully) taking over the responsible world - sustainability. Two time award-winning landscape design firm TerraVerde includes sustainability into the very core of its designs. "We campaign for landscapes with an appealing atmosphere that are in harmony with the local climate and require minimal resource input," says showroom manager Reem Heather Dabbas. The company is known for its innovative designs, environmentally friendly and manageable garden solutions. Dabbas says, "We tell our clients that sustainability is not all or nothing. Implementing sustainable methods is a giant step towards advancing the way our generation preserves essential natural resources." TerraVerde's recently launched show villa in Jumeirah is filled with luscious greens and showcases various creative features and styles in hard and soft landscaping. Continuing on a pathway through the various spaces, clients experience a journey of exterior design, from water features to a sunken majlis, stone pavings and verdant plant life, broadening their design spectrum. "It's a great example of the vast potential that is present in any project."

 Aesthetics are the driving factor in Sunil N. Sawlani's garden theory. Sawlani is the managing director of Royal Gardenscape, one of Dubai's star garden firms offering a variety of hard and soft landscaping products, that allow customers to create their garden of choice. The company also sells garden furniture and landscape accessories including birdbaths, urns, jardinières, fountains and more. These include international designer brands Henri Studio from the US, Italian planter makers Vassar, and Arbiter ornaments and statuary from Spain. Royal Gardenscape's design expanse allows for a range of garden styles: a midsummer night fantasy, dreamy French, minimal chic, or exotic Oriental.

 Sawlani stresses that personal taste and preference should be the starting point of any garden design, and particularly when determining your pool preference. "The design choice should reflect your individual style and what appeals to you," he says. "Do you like curvy patterns or the linear look? Keeping in mind the overall theme of the garden, would a tropical, Grecian or Roman style pool be more suited? Shapes can range from elaborate to simple, depending on the space and personal choice. Just remember, the aim is to have a pool design that blends harmoniously with its surroundings."

 Pools and the pool business is big in Dubai and across the Emirates. Although the recent economic downturn has kept many people from splurging, a pool is still considered a near necessity. From the small and conservative to the big and established residential communities and towers, everyone seems to have a pool or want one. The arrival of summer is heralded with the masses congregating around community or private pools. And even with the availability of community pools, where you could practise swimming and catch up on your aerobics workout, the excruciating heat has residents opting for a plunge pool in their smaller garden spaces.

Pools have taken off in a big way, particularly in the purpose-built communities in Dubai. Giving some pointers on pool design, Sawlani warns that a pool can easily become the single focal point of a landscape, suggesting instead that people work on a design and shape that blends in.

He gives great importance to poolside paving. "One of the major concerns to keep in mind when selecting the right paving to go around any body of water is to opt for a material that is less porous and more durable, so it is able to withstand splashing and foot traffic." He suggests tiles made of sandstone and slate, also because of the lighter colours which are better able to withstand Dubai's soaring temperatures.

Duncan Denley delves into recent history, pointing out that swimming pool design has come a long way since the rectangular or kidney-shaped pool days. Denley is an associate at Cracknell Landscape Architects, an award-winning landscape architecture and urban design firm with formidable regional projects in their portfolio.

Commenting on pool design, Denley says, "The vast majority of a pool's life is spent being looked at, rather than swum in. For this reason, it is critical for the pool to be positioned correctly where it can be viewed and is attractive and interesting to look at." With Dubai's established beach and sun culture, pool designs have become more and more complex, creative and innovative, resulting in masterpieces that are at once easy on the eye and calming for the soul. Denley mentions some of the additions and elements of successful pool designs. "A good pool area would typically feature a combination of infinity edges, beach edges, in-pool planters, flush and timber deck edges, unusual shapes and seating ledges. Pools can be raised from the ground and the overflow edges become attractive waterfalls. They can be spectacularly illuminated, include shallow lounging areas and take on an infinite number of shapes. Once the traditional notions are shed of what a swimming pool is and how it should be used and what it should be constructed from, the sky is the limit for modern pool designers."

Denley's comments send our thought bubbles into a dream squiggle state. It seems, once you give your ideas free reign, the entire home exterior is your very own oyster.