Arbours, Pergolas and Archways

Arbours, pergolas and archways not only have a functional use in providing shade but they also provide a vertical interest in the garden and can look beautiful when covered with climbing plants. I particularly like to use scented climbers so that you pick up the scent as you walk through the pergola or sit under the arbour.

Arbours

An arbour is an overhead structure which provides shade to a static area, e.g a space for a bench . They can be a completely open structure or can have one or more sides filled in e.g. with trellis. They can be attached to the house or be free standing but whichever is the case they need to be integrated into the overall scheme of the garden.

Pergolas

A pergola is a covered walkway that provides shade over a path. They can be curved or straight and to add interest, a focal point can be added to the end of the walkway to entice you to walk through it. Pergolas can be made completely from timber, or timber cross members on stone or brick uprights. For a more Victorian style you could use a metal pergola.

Archways

Similarly, archways add vertical structure but are useful for a smaller garden as they generally only consist of two pairs of uprights and are perfect to lead one from one area of the garden to another.

“We were really impressed with the design service offered by Jayne. Jayne was able to take our initial brief and translate this into a stunning contemporary design that really made the most of the small space we had and provided a great backdrop to our new kitchen extension. The combination of hard landscaping and planting have completely transformed the garden. Over several meetings she was able to communicate the concepts and hone the design and even sample materials. She then recommended and then liaised with the landscaper to ensure the implementation went to plan before completing the final planting.”

Mrs Fenner
Marston Moretaine

"I found Jayne to be very friendly and pleasant to work with. The design is lovely - very attractive. I was impressed with Jayne's willingness to adapt to and take account of our cost constraints and likes and dislikes regarding plants. All work was carried out efficiently and pleasantly. Jayne was always ready to discuss and advise about design and plants and has transformed a boring and rather difficult small garden into an interesting area which will only improve as the plants grow and mature."

Mr & Mrs Barwell
Welwyn Garden City

We love our garden now. Our two dogs had pretty much destroyed it and it had become an embarrassment. We never used it, not even just for ourselves. It now has structure and a proper patio area and is always good to look at even in this bleak weather!

This will be our second spring with it and I'm really looking forward to seeing everything grows again and how it will change this year.

Mr & Mrs Crooke
Flitton

Jayne was always totally reliable, whether coming out to look at the garden or providing plans and ideas, and is a very knowledgeable plantswoman.

She had a good understanding of what I wanted to do with the garden, and always listened to my ideas and then made suggestions that were appropriate to the location and aspect.

Mr & Mrs Townsend
Houghton Conquest

Jayne's ideas of how to transform a long straight garden into something more interesting were quite inspirational. By introducing shape and perspective the garden now has structure.

The planting plan she suggested has added interest and constant colour which changes with the season.

Needless to say we are delighted.

Mr & Mrs Collier
Pulloxhill

We were delighted with Jayne's approach to our garden and her understanding of what we were trying to achieve.

Her knowledge of plants and what will actually work is fantastic.

Three years on we are still delighted with our garden.

Mr & Mrs Bryant
Pulloxhill

Jayne has a real passion for gardening and her knowledge of plants is highly impressive. She seems to know exactly which plant will thrive in a particular part of the garden - sunny, shady, soil type and so on. She also thinks about the proportions and overall effect.

To work with, she is extremely flexible and happy to give you just the bits of advice or help you need.

Mel Henson
Welwyn Garden City