New Forest Garden

With a gently sloping lawn and boundary hedges, the new owners were keen to create a garden for wildlife with more interest to be seen from within the house. The open setting within the New Forest was already beautiful with a backdrop of old oak trees and paddocks leading to a golf course in the distance, so a soft touch was required.

A simple self-binding gravel path meanders across the central contours, bringing the garden into two parts with the upper area a more informal lawn with lots of new trees and shady planting of ferns and native shrubs, the lower lawn a more open space which runs towards the fields beyond. A wildlife pond is surrounded by old tree stumps with ferns and primula, and outside the kitchen is a perfectly formed herb garden leading to the vegetable garden.

The clients have built the pergola and summerhouse themselves, with a swing added in the autumn to enjoy the view.