Elaine’s Garden in July

Looking out of the window at Elaine and John Thurston’s floriferous back garden, it is hard to imagine it without a fabulous array of flowers. ‘Just five years ago, it was little more than fence-to-fence lawn, a few shrubs, and a couple of trees to give some privacy from the neighbouring houses,’ recalls Elaine. ‘Today, we have the garden we’ve always wanted — a tranquil, cottage-style garden with a soft, romantic colour palette of pinks, white and baby blues.’ Such a radical change did not happen overnight but when the couple’s two sons had outgrown using the back garden as a playground and the swings and slides were disposed of, it left the plot as a blank canvas,’