The place

A lovely traditional stone built house, located in the centre of Braunton, a village close to the surfing beaches and countryside of North Devon. A walled garden leads out to the lower meadow, through an original wrought iron gate. Peaceful and private, the space lends itself to outdoor entertaining.

The brief

To transform the garden into a beautiful space to look out on from the home, and which invites the family to enjoy time together outside. A social area to enjoy meals with family and friends. It was important to have colour in the planting and the client wanted outdoor lighting to extend the garden’s use during warm evenings. The garden had a few tired and dated features that needed to be removed and the stone walls had become obscured by ivy.

The design

The new design centred around a social area with bespoke oak pergola. The choice of an oak feature works well, reflecting the traditional materials already in the house. New paths of Indian sandstone complement the colours of the stone walls and bring a consistency to the look. The seating area was positioned in the sunniest aspect and to benefit from an existing wisteria plant, which will be encouraged to grow around the pergola.

New curved planting beds were designed to wrap around the seating area and draw the eye down to the gate and into the meadow. A flight of timber and gravel steps lead down from the seating area and create an interesting banked planting opportunity. This planting takes full advantage of the warmer micro-climates within the walled garden, with brighter hot colours on the warmer, sunnier side and more emphasis on green texture and larger shrubs on the north side and by the oak tree. Espalier fruit trees have been planted close to the house to make use of the favourable south-facing stone wall.

The large mature oak tree and the magnolia have been lit to highlight their vertical structure and create evening drama when illuminated.

A design to celebrate the unique style of this home and its setting within North Devon.