Landscape Design
Patio of the Week
Yard of the Week: Dreamy Garden With Secluded Seating
A shift in focus and bold design decisions visually expand an urban plot and create a plant lover’s haven
Dutch plantsman and designer Piet Oudolf is admired for his beautiful landscapes filled with dreamy drifts of perennial plants, and it was a love of his work that inspired the owners of this home to hire landscape designer Joanne Bernstein. The couple had seen her work in a book by Noel Kingsbury, who’s collaborated with Oudolf on several titles, and liked her style.
Making some radical design decisions, Bernstein took the space from blocky and restrained to soft and beautiful. “The owners wanted a garden filled with plants — an immersive experience,” she says, “and [the man] in particular takes huge pleasure from tending the garden — he loves looking after it.”
Making some radical design decisions, Bernstein took the space from blocky and restrained to soft and beautiful. “The owners wanted a garden filled with plants — an immersive experience,” she says, “and [the man] in particular takes huge pleasure from tending the garden — he loves looking after it.”
Before: One of the homeowners had tried to create a Piet Oudolf feel, but he still wanted the garden to have a lawn. It was also hard to get away from the domination of the unused garden building at the back. “The first thing I said was, ‘Do you still use this building?’ ” Bernstein recalls. “I suggested it would be transformative to remove it, as they would gain so much space, and it was occupying the sunniest spot.”
The couple had planting beds around the perimeter, then small patches of grass and a narrow slate path running down the middle that was splitting the space in two. “If you divide a small garden like this, you emphasize the smallness,” Bernstein says. “If you make it a uniform whole, it feels so much bigger.”
She suggested that the homeowners “could do away with all this,” she continues. “They were stunned — it had never occurred to them they could get rid of the building or the lawn.”
The couple had planting beds around the perimeter, then small patches of grass and a narrow slate path running down the middle that was splitting the space in two. “If you divide a small garden like this, you emphasize the smallness,” Bernstein says. “If you make it a uniform whole, it feels so much bigger.”
She suggested that the homeowners “could do away with all this,” she continues. “They were stunned — it had never occurred to them they could get rid of the building or the lawn.”
After: As well as stealing the sunniest patch, the garden building was obscuring the view. “Behind is an old cemetery that has some lovely trees in it,” Bernstein says. “Now there’s the borrowed landscape that’s much more present in the garden.”
She put in a new shed to store the garden tools. “That’s now screened by a new, multistemmed Japanese angelica tree (Aralia elata),” she says.
The fencing at the back is new, because the building had previously formed the boundary. “It was the owners’ idea to use those spaced timbers so the light permeates it,” Bernstein says. “Behind is the cemetery wall, so they’re not having to screen anything ugly. The evergreen star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) growing up it will become lush and dense.”
She put in a new shed to store the garden tools. “That’s now screened by a new, multistemmed Japanese angelica tree (Aralia elata),” she says.
The fencing at the back is new, because the building had previously formed the boundary. “It was the owners’ idea to use those spaced timbers so the light permeates it,” Bernstein says. “Behind is the cemetery wall, so they’re not having to screen anything ugly. The evergreen star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) growing up it will become lush and dense.”
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Before: Key to the new scheme was removing the straight path. Before, the view both ways, from the house and, seen here, from the garden building, was uninspiring, with the eye drawn to the structures at either end rather than to the plantings.
After: Now there’s a single sweep of path making a curve through the plantings and terminating at the dining area at the rear, in the sunniest spot. “The curving path is the critical part of the whole design — it would have been a disaster to have kept a straight path,” Bernstein says. “Curves are very pleasing on the eye and they also create these different proportions for planting.”
She further softened the effect by swapping the chunky gray slate pathway material for Breedon gravel. “It has a lovely soft texture,” she says of the self-binding limestone gravel. “It’s made of fine particles, giving it a more dusty look that’s softer on the eye.”
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She further softened the effect by swapping the chunky gray slate pathway material for Breedon gravel. “It has a lovely soft texture,” she says of the self-binding limestone gravel. “It’s made of fine particles, giving it a more dusty look that’s softer on the eye.”
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The couple like strong colors and the inspiration for the planting scheme came from inside the house. “In their kitchen, they have a bright red bench and an aubergine [Farrow & Ball’s Brinjal] kitchen,” Bernstein says. “Those two colors were the starting point, and they’re fantastic with yellow and mustard.”
The balance of colors is beautifully illustrated in this shot. The purple New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae ‘Violetta’) is backed by yellow yarrow (Achillea sp.), which is in turn backed by the tall red maple (Acer sp.). The tree has been there for 25 years, and it was one of the plants Bernstein wanted to keep. “It would have been insane to take that out,” she says.
The plantings also include reed grass (Calamagrostis sp.), dogwood (Cornus sp.) and a white climbing rose on the fence, which was also existing.
The plantings also include reed grass (Calamagrostis sp.), dogwood (Cornus sp.) and a white climbing rose on the fence, which was also existing.
The small patio by the house already existed and wasn’t changed, but the lush plantings now spill onto the paving, creating a lovely spot for a morning coffee.
The soft grass in the foreground is Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra), with quaking grass (Briza media) behind. The low violet flowers are cranesbill (Geranium phaeum ‘Lily Lovell’). The owners already had a couple of large lead planters, and Bernstein kept one of them and filled it with leafy hostas (just visible at bottom left).
The soft grass in the foreground is Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra), with quaking grass (Briza media) behind. The low violet flowers are cranesbill (Geranium phaeum ‘Lily Lovell’). The owners already had a couple of large lead planters, and Bernstein kept one of them and filled it with leafy hostas (just visible at bottom left).
There wasn’t the budget to change the fences, but the couple removed the trellises and bought more bamboo roll to fill in the gaps and unify the side boundaries. “It gives a different look to a regular timber fence,” Bernstein says.
Bernstein emphasizes that there will always be a few plants that don’t thrive and need to be replaced. “No planting plan will give you 100% certainty. If a few plants haven’t done well, that’s fine and to be expected,” she says. “It’s not an exact science. Plants are living things with their own idiosyncrasies and every site has its own microclimate.
“A couple of the plants here didn’t thrive and I’ve suggested alternatives,” she continues. “We’re replacing the Briza media, because it’s a cool-season grass, so it flourishes early and can end up looking quite tatty in the summer. We’re swapping it for Panicum, which is a warm-season grass that takes longer to get going but stands all winter looking fabulous.”
“A couple of the plants here didn’t thrive and I’ve suggested alternatives,” she continues. “We’re replacing the Briza media, because it’s a cool-season grass, so it flourishes early and can end up looking quite tatty in the summer. We’re swapping it for Panicum, which is a warm-season grass that takes longer to get going but stands all winter looking fabulous.”
The transformed garden offers beautiful views from all angles and has very much expanded the couple’s living space, thanks to the sunny dining area at the rear. “The owners entertain a lot; they’re incredible cooks,” Bernstein says.
Quizzed on her favorite part of the garden, she says: “I think the bold colors are wonderful and the variety of textures. Because there’s so much planting, it has that immersive quality, and that’s made the garden feel so much bigger.”
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Quizzed on her favorite part of the garden, she says: “I think the bold colors are wonderful and the variety of textures. Because there’s so much planting, it has that immersive quality, and that’s made the garden feel so much bigger.”
More on Houzz
Tour more landscapes
Browse landscape photos
Find a local deck and patio specialist
Shop for your outdoor spaces
Yard at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with grown children
Location: Southwest London
Size: 1,119½ square feet (104 square meters)
Designer: Joanne Bernstein Garden Design
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