Photo copyright Guy Jones at Emotive Landscapes
This pretty timber clad house in North oxford sits within a Conservation Area, and part of the brief from the planners for the alterations to the house and garden was that they needed to be sympathetic with the “artisan urban-village feel” of the street.
The front garden had been paved over with black concrete setts – we replaced these with deep planting beds planted with a loose woodland mix, with clipped Yew balls, Magnolias and Viburnum ‘Le Bois Marquis’ to give winter structure. The beds are edged in pale grey and soft yellow clay pavers, complimenting the pale blue of the house. The driveways are in self-binding gravel. This gives the front façade a softer feel and help to tie it into the English cottage style of the other front gardens along the street.
The large rear garden had some beautiful trees which we were able to retain – a Horse Chestnut, Magnolia and enormous Box hedge. These created a framework for a garden of deep planting beds cut through with a narrow clay paver path. Most of the garden is shady, but the back of the house faces south so
we created a large sunny terrace in sawn York stone accessed by a glass bridge over the basement extension. We used glass balustrades and light airy planting to edge the lightwells allowing for the maximum amount of light to the basements. A Corten steel wall fountain creates a dramatic focal point visible from the front door, and tree planting to the boundaries make the space feel more private and enclosed.