Good garden furniture is an investment in comfort and enjoyment, and can be an added adornment. So take care over your choice of furniture – it should be in sympathy with the surrounding architecture and the overall atmosphere of the garden.

The best furniture may be expensive, so allow time to consider the disadvantages, as well as advantages, of whatever takes your fancy.

The placing of this furniture is as vital as its style and construction. Most people are more relaxed sitting in an enclosed area – an arbour or a glade, for example. There are many ways of creating a sense of delicious intimacy, from simply surrounding your seat with scented plants, to placing it in a pool of soft light at dusk while all else is in shade.

While many garden owners see their plot as a retreat from the world, others have their most enjoyable gatherings with friends and family in a garden that serves as an extra room, complete with comfortable seats, a table to gather at for a meal and a barbecue for the cooking.

Some furniture comes complete with protective covers which help to keep it clean (particularly useful in town gardens and under trees) and to prolong its life, but the shrouded shapes give a rather gloomy feel to the garden in winter.

Those fortunate enough to have a summerhouse or a conservatory are free to choose all kinds of charming and delicate furniture which is enjoyed inside and brought out when the weather is mild.

Suiting the surrounding
Choose the furniture with as much thought for whether it suits its surroundings as you do when buying furnishings for the house. Plastic stacking chairs may seem brash on a formal terrace, while an ornate stone bench looks pretentious in a simple modern garden.

Any seat, no matter how comfortable, ruins the atmosphere of the garden if it is shoddily made, unbalanced in style or fitted with garish covers and cushions. Plain dark blue is particularly pleasing in the sun, whereas a splash of bright colour brings a shaded corner to life. By the sea or a pool, turquoise looks fresh while striped canvas is agreeable for deck chairs and hammocks; just two colours, and wide stripes, make for a crisp look. Floral patterns compete with nature's floral display but come off badly beside it.

Apt for occasional use
Comfort is important, of course, but to varying degrees. A seat used as a temporary stopping-place, for a brief rest or to admire the view, need not have the same comfort-rating as one at a table used for meals outdoors, while seats used for sunbathing and drowsing need to be very comfortable indeed.

In a small garden, with room for just one seat, it is useful to have something that is easily moved. Movable furniture is inconvenient if too heavy but lightweight furniture will have a shorter life if left outside. A handy compromise is a sturdy wooden seat with handles and wheels to make the moving easier.

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