THELANDSCAPING
“Duetothesteepgradients,weusedour
diggertocreatea levelledterraceatthevery
topofthegarden.Thisallowedustoplant
theMicheliagracipeshedgeandcreatemore
privacyasquicklyaspossible,”saysArnaud.
Lighttimbercladdingwasbuiltaround
theoutdoorlivingareatosoftentheextensive
retainingbehind,creatinga courtyardfeelinthe
space.Ratherthanlayingnewpavers,Arnaud
optedtodresstheexistingconcretewitha
newfinishthataddedfreshcolour,texture
andheight,ensuringa seamlessconnection
betweentheindoorandoutdoorfloorlevels.
Arnaudalsodesigneda pairofbeautiful,
laser-cutCorten-steelgatesand a fence that
surroundsthefrontgarden.
“Thisprovidesa lightscreenfromthestreet
andkeepsthedoginside.Belowthegates
are‘floating’sleepersteps(anda landing
platform)installedona steelframe.A powerful
floodlighthiddenbelowthestepsprovides
strongindirectlightingatnighttoreinforcethe
lightweightfeeloftheplantingandcontrast
with the heavy feel of the steps,” he says.
THEPLANTING
Theplantsarea blendofboththeEnglishand
tropicalstylesthatMichelloves.Atthetopof
theslopethemicheliahedgescreenstheroad
andreducesnoisepollution.Massesofcreamy
bloomsinspringcreatea floweringbackdrop.
Arnaudaddedmaturesugarcanepalms
(Dypsisbaronii) – a clumpingvarietyonly
reachingaround3minheight– thatwillsoften
theexistingbungalowpalms.“Thesewill
provideheightanda lushfeel,aswellasstreet
appealandlightscreening,”heexplains.
Healsouseda combinationofsubtropical
floweringandfoliagespeciessuchasblack
taro(Colocasianigra),Ligulariareniformis,
Philodendronxanadu,Loropetalum‘Burgundy’,
Liriopemuscari‘RoyalPurple’,Iresineherbstii
Dietesgrandiflora,Heterocentronelegans,
Gardenia‘Veitchii’andCapedaisy‘Maseru’.
A hedge(Camelliatransnokoensis) was
plantedabovethecourtyard’sretainingwall
tocreatemore“floweringwallpaper”.And
forfurtherstructureViburnum‘EvePrice’
standardswereunderplanted withBuxus
‘Green Gem’.•THISPAGEThecourtyardis surroundedby
a cascadinggardenofcoloursandtextures,
withflower-filledpotsandclipped topiary
adding to the vibrant mix.“Wewanted a tropicaloasis thatwouldblend withmy English stylegarden
and allow us to sit outdoors with complete privacy and tranquillity”
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