New House Garden

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‘We would never have thought of this ourselves’

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Introduction

I came to this project when the new house designs were being finalised. After the initial meeting with the clients, I attended project meetings with the client, project manager and architects to make sure that the landscape and building worked together and discuss technical aspects and materials. The rear garden building and a small pergola to work under and the front drive dimensions and some materials were fixed but I was given free rein to design the rear space that was a blank canvas apart from two mature beech trees in each corner.

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Front Garden

The front garden borders buffer the resin bound gravel to give a seaside feel. This provides a side wind break from the strong sea winds . The ‘cloud pruned’ pine references the local coastal pines with a native multi stem Amelanchier (service tree) providing wildlife benefits, spring blossom and beautiful autumn colours. The planting colours are silvery with rich evergreens for winter and splashes of bronze to pick up the colours of the house trims. The co-ordinating tulips have mixed shades of orange for spring colour.

 

Rear Garden

The clients were happily surprised by my concept for the rear garden and agreed that I would liaise with the pergola supplier to extend it from its original rectangle to a larger frame helping with the place making of the individual areas. The rear garden has enough width to provide a route around a central lawn area. Passing through a gateway hedge the warm bronze paving leads you to the seating area for coffee in the morning sun, up to the garden building, around to the water feature (on a central axis from the house) amongst the meadow area and herbaceous border and back under the wisteria clad pergola to the outdoor kitchen patio.

 

Returning to the house you pass the large bespoke herb planters. The beautiful rusty shades compliment the house trims and pick up the bronze plant shades. These are offset with the icy blue flowers of the agapanthus, lavender, wisteria, cranesbill and hebes. The central sloping lawn helps the garden feel spacious, it draws the eye to the water feature to detract from the rear neighbours’ windows and is the centre around which this journey is laid out. It is edged with either lavender, a clipped hedge that holds back the border plants or clipped evergreen sculptural globes to provide a different feeling in each adjoining area. These areas have varying planting styles, from formal near the house to natural at the rear. This provides varying year-round interest but is unified by the co-ordinated colour scheme that runs throughout. The low wall takes up the the lawn slope, ending at seating height and is clad to match the house and garden building. I commissioned the bespoke cast copings from a local company which led to the house copings being ordered to match.  At the clients request I put native bluebells under the new spring flowering dogwood tree to add to the snowdrops, tall tulips, and agapanthus in other areas.

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Realisation

The building contractors set out and built the hard landscape elements from the AutoCAD plan and setting out drawings I provided. I made planting plans and lists and acquired two quotes for the soft landscaping which a local landscape contractor has installed in phases as the house and drive were finished. I supervised the works checking work progress and setting out the plants as they arrived from a local nursery. I attended site meetings with the builder, clients and landscape contractor as needed. I put the client in contact with a local garden maintenance company to ensure the garden matures and looks great through all the seasons.

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In consultation, the clients selected the outdoor lighting and sourced the wooden furniture and side gates to finish off the garden ensemble. They found a fabulous water feature on holiday and it was easy to lay the water and electrics while the contractors were on site. I designed the herb planters to accommodate lots of herbs for the keen cook and acquired two quotes for their fabrication in weathering steel.

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