It pays to go pro

When I first lived on my own a few years ago (well, as alone as a person can be with a dog, some cats, three ducks, four hens, two roosters and a dove), I came to realise that certain household tasks did not do themselves.
The toilet, I found, was not self-cleaning after all, the dishwasher did not have an "unload yourself" button, and the lawnmower refused to come out of the garden shed no matter how long the grass grew.
I consulted the local paper and found Robyn, who came with a zero-turning circle mower and without an attitude problem. She didn't have to give the mower counselling to get it to start, she didn't shout at her equipment or throw it on the ground when it ran out of petrol, and she didn't surreptitiously destroy small plants because she didn't agree with where I'd planted them.
Some years later, she was followed by Russell, who galloped around my large property for $60, and sent side-splittingly funny invoices explaining what he was going to do with the money.
Their stirling services eventually taught me that when you can't do it (or can't be bothered doing it) yourself, you should pay a professional. Having just returned to my two-acre block after a long absence and been confronted by the results of my poor initial planning, I would certainly hire a professional designer next time.
And the first thing they would tell me would be: the only starting point is a pencil and paper.
Whether you're going to get a landscaper or do it yourself, the first thing you write with your pencil and paper is a name for your garden, says landscape designer Jamie Macphail. A working title, such as "Tropical Mess" or "Symmetrical Outlook" will focus your ideas and stop you getting off track.
The three sub-headings, he says, should be "Functional" - a list of the practical elements such as parking, clothesline, paths; "Semi-functional" - perhaps some screening to hide a neighbour's garage, or a terrace to create a level lawn; and "Wouldn't it be Great" - the things you've seen in other gardens or remember from childhood that epitomise for you the perfect outdoor space.
If you do decide to engage a designer, your list will ensure you both have the same plan. Then he or she can advise on the finer details, such as the scale and proportion of hard landscaping elements, suitable materials, contractors, plants and decorative items. It's this kind of input that may well give you a result that surpasses your expectations.
Somewhere in all this there needs to be another heading that says "Budget" - unless you are one of the lucky among us that doesn't have to have one.
Make sure you prioritise, Jamie advises. It's wise to spend money on the aspects of the garden you will enjoy the most, rather than throwing it at areas you'll hardly ever see.
And keep in mind that it doesn't all have to be up and running at the same time, since a garden is a constantly evolving project ... whether you like it or not.