"We did not want the front of our home to just be a place for the car, we wanted to have a lovely garden too! Nick and Doug have given us a gorgeous front garden full of flower and interest. The cheerful planting has been admired by so many and has given us so much pleasure during lockdown" - Gaby & Richard SW18
This wide but narrow front garden was great fun for us to design, as not only did it need to allow for the parking of the family car, but also to have lots of wonderful meadow-like planting that would flower from early spring to late autumn.
In order to create a feeling of depth, we positioned the entrance to the garden at the centre and marked the boundary with a traditional brick wall, which was in-keeping with the neighbouring properties.
This layout allows for access to the property’s side entrance and also the front door, with generously sized flowerbeds to the front and the bay window. The light grey paving was chosen to harmonize with the house façade and windows.
The planting for this garden was key in softening the hard landscaping and providing a beautiful carpet of meadow-like colour over a long season. The winter structure can be seen in the previous photos, where we used Taxus topiary balls and evergreen grasses to give the garden colour and interest. We also managed to include trees in the planting plan to draw the eye upwards and create a feeling of privacy.
The profusion of colour really begins in March with the arrival of daffodils and tulips, followed by the first flowers of the delightful orange and pink geum ‘Mai Tai’. The yellow daises of the Anthemis and the purple Alliums then join the party, with the purple spires of Salvia ‘East Friesland’ arriving soon after.
Old English roses are planted below the bay window and by the front step, with their intense fragrance filling the surrounding air.
So we went from this….
to this...
