A hidden haunt in Spitalfields

What a busy summer we have had! Andy and I have designed and built around five gardens over the last few months.  But for a variety of reasons (suppliers, builders, weather(!)) none of them are quite complete.  Nonetheless, I anticipate a glut of blog entries towards the end of the year when we can finally tidy them up and put them on show.

View towards decking

In the meantime, I thought I would share this one with you.

How it was originally

View from the back door now

I did this design for a small garden in the Spitalfields area.  Okay. Let's be honest.  This is my garden.  I did - however - do what I would normally do for a client (i.e. sat down, filled in a questionnaire, considered budget and produced a design). I even asked the fiancé what he might want.

View down the garden now

The main aim of the brief was to create more space to grow my herbs. But at the same time I wanted to have a comfortable, relaxing garden which the 'other half' might venture into from time to time.  To date, the backyard had been my exclusive domain and the fiancé had avoided it at all costs (I think because he feared being roped into weeding, or something). I really wanted to change this.  I wanted him to want to be outdoors as much as I.  Maybe not to garden, but at least to sit out there. Sometimes.

Another important goal - something which I feel strongly about - was to create a backdrop for our living room.  For many of us living in London, we often don't have as much space as we'd like.  Although it is currently in vogue to remodel the garden to be an extension of the house, I wasn't really looking to make an "extra" room, as such.  No.  What I wanted to do was to create a space which expressly drew the eye from beyond the interior of the house to the world beyond, both during the day and at night.  Too often we avoid looking out of windows - or even keep the blinds drawn - if the scene is unappealing.  The result can be unnecessarily repressive and claustrophobic.  Here, I wanted to extend the living room to the back of the garden, to make the whole house feel lighter, airier and larger, just via the view.

View from the decking area

Consequently, the design included a clean, bare screen at the end of the garden.  This had the dual purpose of (a) hiding the ugly - but extremely useful - shed; (b) providing a structured backdrop, especially because the planting was always going to be *very* unruly.  At the moment the lines are severe.  But as time goes by, I expect the edges of the screen to be softened by the ivy (in the shade) and clematis (on the sunnier side).   The screen also delineates the area of the "bench terrace".  This is an area at the end of the garden where you can go, sit on the stone bench and enjoy the peace and quiet.   Beside the bench is a water feature: a large sandstone sphere, which provides a soothing melody of water trickling gently over pebbles, meanwhile fragrant evergreen jasmine grows up alongside, and underfoot, soft gravel crunches.  This is a spot from which you can mull over your morning coffee or enjoy a glass of wine in the evening.

View of bench

Water feature

To reach the "bench terrace", blue limestone slabs step across a mass of planting. In between the stones are thyme and on either side rosemary and lavender, all of which release their scent each time you brush past.  The blue limestone echoes the colour of the bench and the setts which flank the shed.

Stepping stones through the garden

And by the house is the main terrace.  This is constructed of ipe decking which runs horizontally, slowing the view across the garden.  The decking is framed on three sides with aluminium, giving the structure a neat finish.  It also protects the wood as - intentionally - the decking is flush with the garden.  On either side of the decking is trellis - with grape vines which wind their way towards the house and more clematis.

The planting is mostly herbs. All sort of things. From red orach, to chop suey, sage, monkshood, verbena, valerians, hyssops, bronze fennel. You get the idea! It comprises largely young (grown from seed this spring) herbaceous perennials which were planted out rather late on in the summer.  I would expect the plants to bush out and reach their optimum heights next year.

Planting: email me if you want to know what any of them are!

Finally, there is lighting throughout the garden, from the down lighters on the screen, to illuminate the bench terrace, to up lighters catching some of the plants around the garden.  We have used a remote control system to manage the electrics (the ambient lighting, water feature, outside plug and lighting in the shed).  The boy loves it because it comes with an iPhone app which means everything can be fiddled with via wi-fi.

View from bench terrace to house

Suffice to say, since it has been done, the other half has been using the garden nearly (but not quite) as much as I. And I think we have improved our living space infinitesimally (that's what it feels like, anyway). Which is definitely a good thing.

A Balham retreat

Naughtily, it has been a long time since I have updated my gardening blog...  Luckily it is because we have been out building new gardens!  But here is one that we did in Balham for a young professional.

This was a difficult spot - long, narrow, with little privacy. The site, before we started, lacked formal structure.  And although it was open, it felt clumsy and a bit untidy.

BEFORE: view of garden - towards the eucalyptus/end of garden

The brief was clear.

• The client wanted a space where he could entertain but also enjoy a quiet moment on his own. 
• There were several features the client wanted to keep: a large eucalyptus and the lap larch fencing. 
• He also wanted a lawn and lush planting. 
• Furthermore, he leads a busy life and didn't want to spend time maintaining the garden.  

Ultimately, he wanted a space which was low maintenance, private, yet pleasant to use at all times of the year.   To achieve this, we did several things.  First, we split the main part of the garden into three.  The first part of the garden provided space for a backdrop of planting; the second part became the "terrace"; and the third was lawn.

Layout showing the tricky dimensions of the garden

The part of the garden for entertaining comprised decking, raised slightly above the garden (10cm).  In this space were integrated bench-seats with cream cushions; the cushions could be stored in the benches if there were inclement weather.  On either side of the decking, along the fenceline, were narrow raised planters (H90cm) which also acted as a backrest for the seating.

AFTER: cedar decking, showing raised planters behind the seating area

AFTER: cedar decking, showing cushions (still in plastic!)

Meanwhile, at the end of the lawn, under the eucalyptus, was dense planting to ensure the seating area felt enclosed and to provide vertical interest and colour.  And in the eucalyptus was a spotlight to provide some ambient lighting in the area.

AFTER: note the Japanese maple in front of 
the Fatsia (the big leafy green plant) which has not yet budded.  
The Japanese maple has deep red leaves from spring onwards, 
turning deep crimson in autumn

Above the decking, hung between four posts was a cream canvas sail; this provides shade, shelter and privacy during the summer months.

AFTER: view of decking with sail and cushions

AFTER: this picture gives an a sense of the size of 
the garden and how the sail adds an element of intimacy

Towards the front area of the garden, near the house, is a square of lawn framed with cobbles and screened off from the path with Photinia x fraseri 'Red Robin' which ensures privacy and provides colour.  Importantly, the view behind the Photinia was directly into the downstair flat's bedroom.  The screen effectively benefits all parties.

AFTER: view towards lawn and the 
Photinia x fraseri 'Red Robin' clipped to shape

AFTER: view towards the Photinia x fraseri 
'Red Robin' from the downstair flat's bedroom window

Around the house, the pathway was resurfaced with a resin bond aggregate (beige) which picks up the colour of the cobbles.  This provides a clean and fresh feel to the area. The pathway is edged with beige riven sandstone setts (along the planting border and between the lawn and the path).

BEFORE: side return

AFTER: side return

Finally, along the west border, a new laplarch fence was hung.  And there was a new wooden gate between the two gardens to ensure additional privacy.  The fencing was painted stone to provide a clean contemporary finish.

BEFORE: entry to the neighbour's garden - 
this again shows the lack of privacy in the garden

AFTER: a gate has been built between the existing 
posts (somewhat tricky as the posts were not aligned)!