Sloped Suburban Garden -Welwyn

This garden consisted mainly of lawn sloping down away from the house, with a shed at the bottom and a concrete path leading to it. There was a terrace by the house but it was looking tired. The brief was to open up the existing terrace, create more interest in the garden and utilise the slope, incorporating a sunken dining area in the shade at the bottom of the garden. The client particularly wanted to be able to walk between planted areas to reach other parts of the garden.

My approach to the design was to create separate areas to the garden with a choice of paths to reach them.

The upper terrace was re-laid to a new curving shape from natural sandstone.

Adjacent to this was planting through which ran two paths. One path was made from pavers and sloped down to a gravel area in which stood a water feature.

A set of steps led to a sunken terrace area with walls just the right height for guests to sit on. The paving stones from the original upper terrace were re-used here. The shed on the opposite side was screened with close weave trellis planted with climbers.

The second path was turf and led to a lower circular lawn which interlocked with the gravel area. A pergola adds height over this path. Each area was set at a different level to utilise the slope and add interest.

The garden was lit for interest at night. The highlights were the pergola, water feature and steps. The planting was traditional in style with all year interest and colour.