A contemporary country garden
Twyford, Hampshire
The Brief
My clients were extending and refurbishing their home, on a stunning site with panoramic views, and wanted an unfussy "no frills" contemporary country garden to complement their "new" house and lifestyle - with space for children to play, dogs to run, and chickens to roam. The existing garden presented quite a few challenges, with very steep banks and terraces cut into chalk, as well as a poorly located tennis court and swimming pool.
My design
To reduce the dominance of the overpowering tennis court, I created "windows" through to the garden beyond. Generating lines outward from the curved house helped to integrate the pool and tennis court into the inner garden, which I sub-divided with low hedges - leaving clear views to the outer garden. Simple but visually interesting planting reinforces the garden's contemporary style. And new steps in steep banks encourage movement between the terraces, with a new terraced vegetable garden close to, but out of view of, the house. A striped timber summerhouse and two pool houses (christened "The Beach Huts") adds an element of fun to the garden.