Our backyard has had it all - from swing sets and sandpits to backyard cricket and a Clark Rubber pool.  Its been a great green messy room for all our outdoor fun, but we're about to say goodbye  to it make way for an extension to our house.  And we're not alone - Housing Industry Association figures show that between 2000 and today, the size of new detached houses has risen from 230 sqm to just over 250 sqm. Supersized garages and larger homes mean a small backyard. Also, 40% of all new houses are multi-unit dwellings.

Our garden spaces are growing smaller and while we can't all have a magical rooftop eyrie, we can bring green goodness into our lives in other creative ways.

Don't be shy - start at the garden gate. This trailing rosemary will be appreciated by passers by and useful to you too. Other perennial herbs such as lavender and mint make great front garden plants.

A side passage planted with bamboo gives a view to the rooms on that side of the house, as well as the sound of bamboo rustling in the wind.

Gro-Wall kits are modular, easy to assemble and allow people to have a garden on even the smallest balcony. This company even has a product that fits directly on to structures, allowing for walls to become green screens.

Large pots and quality potting mixes are a sizeable investment..but think of the lawnmowing you are saving.  Grouping potted plants together helps create a little microclimate and also gives more of an effect of a 'garden'.

And you don't have to give up the lemon tree. New varieties now perform very well in pots, ask at your local nursery.

Stand alone planter boxes can have drip irrigation and built in drainage, making them fit into the most architectural of spaces, with the benefit of being easy maintenance.

If you really still cant give up the grass, treat it as a textural rug, a cool green floor covering just waiting for bare feet. With a small area of grass to care for, it will be sure to be lush, green and prickle free.  

So there you have it, some ideas and inspiration for those of us (and most of us) who don't have a quarter acre any more.  Here's to a new generation of gardening!