Our clients were a retired couple who had bought a new house in Cranleigh. Like all new houses, the builders had laid a very small area of paving with a not very imaginative layout. The garden was laid mainly to lawn, which was a chore to mow, and there was an area of mature planting taking up valuable space in the far corner. A low maintenance garden was requested, with a larger terrace which could be shaded by plants on a pergola. An existing shed had to remain.
Our design solution was to remove the lawn, extend the paving area and create a second seating area at the far end of the garden. To give a sense of enclosure to this new seating area, we commissioned a custom-made curved woven Willow screen which would wrap round the paving.
The route to the new seating area was formed by stepping-stones, set in Cotswold chippings which covered the whole area. The slight rise in the garden was dealt with by the installation of Oak sleeper steps, which run right across the garden. A contemporary metal pergola was custom-made to span the paving in a staggered layout. A new water feature was incorporated which has a gentle drip of water running down a chain, off the pergola into a metal reservoir set into the ground.
The large area of hard landscaping materials was softened by staggering the overall shape and adding pockets of planting throughout the scheme. The colour palette features lime and purple coloured plants such as Euphorbia wulfenni, Heuchera ‘Greenfinch’, Iris ‘Titan’s Glory’ and Lavender ‘Munstead’.
“Cherry, thank you for all your hard work and beautiful design for our garden.”
