URBAN - Social Space
This garden is located in one of Brighton’s beautiful tree lined street between Preston and Blaker’s Parks behind a Victorian terraced house. Our client needed a complete garden revamp, the outdoor space was left derelict and never used.
Our brief was to turn it from a sad and underuse dumping ground to a glamorous, appealing sociable outdoor room for drinks, BBQs and dinner parties. It also had to be appealing to AirBnB guests staying when the owner was renting it out whilst away.
Most importantly, this garden needed to be beautiful and simple. Also, it needed to be easy to look after with the owner, in his own words, “not particularly green fingered but willing to learn”.
We needed to include:
Entertaining space
Inbuilt seating to maximise the use of space
More privacy to adjacent properties using screening
BBQ area
Shading from a drought tolerant specimen Olive tree
New custom gate to rear alley
New custom made bench seating seating
New rendered raised beds
Architectural and culinary planting throughout the season
The existing garden was split into 3 levels stepping uphill but the lack of formal zoning made it feel muddled and unloved. There were also big problems with damp at the rear of the building, a problem which needed urgent attention.
Our design turned an unloved wasteland into a contemporary, simple outdoor entertaining space with a Mediterranean feel. We created three distinct zones:
Lowest level: Shaded calming seating area with evergreens
Middle level: BBQ, cooking and entertaining
Top level: Seating and dining in an private but sunny space
We used a light colour palette for a fresh modern look:
rendered raised beds with drainage
resin bound gravel to create a smooth sophisticated finish
large porcelain paving slabs for the dining area to elevate it
slatted screens and fence made using pressure treated timber
custom made gate and inbuilt seating using durable scaffolding boards which were sanded and waxed for a beautiful sheen
With our client a keen cook and entertainer but on regular trips away, planting needed to be performing in all season with minimal maintenance required.
Herb garden: Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary, Lemon
Sunny spots: Hylotelephium, Euphorbias, Salvias, Verbenas and grasses
Shady spots: Fatsia, Choisya and ferns
