Showcase 3
The client brief for this garden was to create an open garden allowing the light to enter the house. There was also a need for a level area to entertain guests and provide a more child-friendly garden.
The house had been overtaken by vigorous climbers on a rotting pergola which extended the length of the building, preventing light from passing through to the existing paving. The pergola was removed and a smaller pergola structure designed for screening the driveway and neighbours off from view of the house. Some of the existing climbers such as kiwifruit and wisteria were retrained onto the new structure.
The long curving retaining walls were designed to create an amphitheatre-like atmosphere and provide a levelled area in this modern garden. The retaining walls provided the changes in level required for the garden and changes in zones. The free-standing wall (a continuation of the line in the top wall), was designed to divide the garden into zones. A kitchen garden can be discovered along a path beyond the walls.
The earthy purple of the walls ties in with the colours found in the plant selection. Examples are the yellow and orange flowers of the Kangaroo Paws (Anigozanthus sp.) and the grey-green foliage found in a few of the plants chosen i.e. the small shrub, Yellow Buttons Chrysocephalum apiculatum.
The sandstone flagging is designed as an outdoor dining area, from which the garden can be enjoyed. The sandstone – sourced from a local quarry – was chosen as a result of echoing the use of native plants. The purple colour for the walls was based on the earthy purple found in the sandstone, blending the rendered walls into this modern native garden.
