A place for sitting out or entertaining, a place to retreat or make merry, a place to enjoy plants: a patio can enhance your life. Such a place could be yours, for there is no garden too small for a patio and this book simply explains all you need to know to be able to create one. Considering the range of possible styles and all the practical options, Andi Clevely helps you lay first your plans and then your patio, whether it be paved with stone, decked with timber or adorned with pebbles, with full practical instruction. Ideas for lighting, furniture, heating and eating help you turn the structure into an inviting outdoor room. Describing suitable plants for different situations and to create different moods - cool and refreshing white and silver plants for sunny sites, foliage plants for shade, tropical plants for an exotic feel - he shows the variety of ways in which plants in beds, crevices or containers can complete a patio by providing it with structure, colour, texture and seasonal change - and so help your patio become a satisfying expression of your interests and lifestyle and a lasting asset for the garden.