Peak District
Garden Designs
At this listed property set in the Derbyshire peaks National Parks, the client was in the process of renovating the Grade II-listed property and wanted a full redesign of the garden. The owner remit was mainly about enhancing family life and making sure the garden sits comfortably in its setting. They wanted a garden to entertain in, to grow fruit and veg and to have more interesting ornamental areas with year-round interest, and to overall making it feel as if it really belonged to the landscape.
Evidently, at some point the garden had been laid out with various different areas and levels, however, over the years everything had become stripped back and a consequence the house had become disconnected from the garden.
The most complicated thing about this garden was the series of levels and finding a way to reconnect the house with the garden. As a starting point we looked at the original layout plans to see where the pathways and structures had been. We decided to rework the series of terraces so that these not only bring visitors down into the garden but also make the building feel more part of the garden. Then it was about creating more movement by leading the eye so that you are drawn into the garden with various break out zones and different places to stop and be.
While working on the design we realised that there were already some great views and connections with the wider landscape that weren’t actually being exploited There was an old, wooded area that but no real reason to go there, so we created pathways that led down into it and provided seating that looked out on to a view. We then started to bring meadowy areas in and around the garden, as a way of softening the boundaries. We created a productive vegetable garden leading into an ornamental veg garden, and then link with two lawned borders with conical-shaped pear trees. All about atmosphere, movement, and connecting the house to the garden and the garden to the wider landscape.
In terms of materials, the choices were driven by the location and existing materials, which included sandstone paving, stone setts and dry-stone walling. Very simple palette provides sense of place.
