Post category: Case Study No. 4

 

Assessment:

 

Medium height boundary walls, garden faces south, overlooked from the east.

 

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Case Study No. 4 
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Hard landscaping:

 

The garden surface is laid down to gravel with 60 cm square concrete paving slabs set into it to make a small paved sitting area and a path. A raised (30 cm) bed on the south side of the garden lifts plants to the light and provides drainage. A narrow bed around the base of the house walls links the house to the garden.

Two stone troughs can be seen from the windows. An open screen fence of white painted boards (15 x 2.5 cm) on top of the wall provides effective screening without excluding light. Lamps would give dramatic night-time effects.

 

Planting:

 

Plants that prefer dry conditions because the garden is warm and sunny. The sunniest position is given to the plants; the paved area being moved into the shadow of the end wall. Shrubs and perennial flowers of Mediterranean origin are used around the walls, alpine plants in the raised bed and narrow bed. There are alpines in the troughs and also planted through the layer of gravel and allowed to spread over it.

 

Garden style:

 

An informal style using hard materials of informal shape and plants to set them off. Some plants of strong shape, for example spiky types, would set off the gravel.

 

Maintenance and cost:

 

Easily maintained; occasional watering. Relatively inexpensive; gravel is cheap, but real stone troughs and lighting would add to the cost.