A narrow town garden can feel less like a garden and more like a corridor. With neighbouring walls close on both sides and a plot perhaps five metres wide and twenty deep, the temptation is to cram in as much as possible: a shed, a lawn, a patio, a washing line, some pots. Yet the plots that feel calmest and most generous are rarely the busiest. They are the ones that gently refuse to show you everything at once — and the simplest way to achieve that is with curves.

Why straight lines shrink a small garden

Parallel borders with a path down the middle act like tramlines. Your eye travels the full length of the garden in a single glance, takes in the shed, the fence, the far gate, and files the whole space under "small". Because nothing is hidden, there is no sense of journey, and a garden without a journey feels like a passing place rather than a destination.

Curves break that long view. Stand at the back door and you see perhaps a third of the plot; the rest disappears behind a sweep of planting or a bend in the path. The space beyond becomes a question rather than an answer. It is a simple optical trick, and it works every time — even a shallow bend will do it.

Setting out a curve that works

Curves in small gardens need to be generous and few. A tight scalloped edge looks fussy, clips badly, and makes mowing a misery. Aim for a radius of at least 1.5 metres, ideally two, and limit yourself to one broad sweep down each side rather than a repeated wave.

The easiest way to set one out is with a garden hose or a length of rope laid on the ground. Move it around for a good half hour, then stand back and look from several places: the back door, the kitchen window, the far end looking back, and an upstairs window. What reads as a gentle arc from above often looks quite different at eye level.

• Avoid the S-bend. Two opposing curves in a narrow plot create a slalom effect and leave awkward slivers of unusable ground.
• Do not fight the boundaries. Let the curve bow out into the garden rather than pushing the border into the neighbour's wall.
• Keep a straight apron. Leave the first metre or two outside the back door square. Bins, boots, bikes and barbecue trays all need a practical zone, and a firm rectangular terrace gives the eye a rest before the curves begin.
• Mark it clearly. Once you are happy, draw the line with sand, flour or a length of string pegged at intervals before you cut anything.

Widening beds without stealing the middle

A curve lets a border be wide where you want depth and narrow where you need circulation. Push the beds out to 1.2 metres at the outside of the bend, where they will carry shrubs and perennials, and let them pinch back to 60 centimetres at the tightest point. The path can narrow to 75 centimetres or so as it passes — a pinch point is useful, because it makes whatever lies beyond feel like a discovery.

Use one paving material throughout, whether that is gravel, clay pavers or brick, and repeat the same edging on both sides. Consistency of surface is what makes a winding route feel intentional rather than accidental.

Giving the eye somewhere to land

A curve should lead somewhere. Place your focal point at the far end of the garden, or on the outside of a bend where the sweep of the border naturally directs the gaze. Choose something with presence in winter as well as summer: a multi-stem birch, an amelanchier, a handsome pot, a simple bench, a small water bowl. Height matters — a low feature at the end of a long plot will be missed entirely.

Keep it to one clear focus at a time. If the shed, the statue and the acer all compete, the eye darts about and the calm disappears. Better still, let the focal point be partly screened so it appears and vanishes as you walk the path.

Planting the curve so it reads as a whole

In a narrow garden, height belongs at the boundaries. Tall planting in the middle shrinks the space dramatically, so keep the centre open and let the walls do the work of enclosure.

Build each border in layers: structural evergreens for winter bones, mid-height shrubs for bulk, perennials for colour, and ground cover to knit it together. Repeat two or three plants along both sides — the same euphorbia, the same fern, the same clipped box — and the two borders will read as one composition rather than two separate strips. Allow plants to spill over the path edge. Soft, encroaching foliage blurs the hard line of the paving and makes the whole curve feel settled.

Edges, mowing and upkeep

If you keep a lawn, make sure the arc is wide enough for the mower to follow comfortably, or accept that you will be trimming the edge with shears. A spade-cut edge is cheapest and looks crisp; steel or brick-on-edge is more permanent and easier to maintain in the long run.

Curved gravel is far less work than curved grass, and in a small plot it earns its keep by softening sound and reflecting light. Whatever you choose, keep the maintenance realistic. A garden retreat should be somewhere you go to sit, not somewhere that hands you a list of jobs the moment you open the door.