A walled garden

When existing clients bought a large building plot outside Cheltenham, they invited Chameleon Design to design a new garden to complement the architect-designed house sited at one end of the one acre walled garden.

This very exciting commission is now nearing completion, and features curved terraces next to the house, stepping down to follow the lie of the land, from a yorkstone paved dining terrace on the top level, to a generous hardwood deck near the west facing boundary wall. The terraces are edged by a water feature which starts by welling up to fill a great vase form, spilling from there into a rill running alongside the dining terrace, which then opens out and ripples over a chadar wall in Cotswold stone. This feeds into a sweep of shallow water culminating in an impressive waterfall into the bottom pool, which is crossed by a deck bridge, and heavily planted at the far end to provide natural water cleaning. Bespoke arched pergolas echo the sweep of the house roof, as well as the rolling landscape beyond.

Planting is in progress and will feature swathes of graceful grasses and meadow-style perennial plants, to soften the hand landscape next to the building. Raised beds next to the house and the old garden walls take advantage of south- and west-facing aspects and include many perfumed shrubs and climbers. In response to the clients’ preferences, the planting will be rich and varied in texture, form and colour, providing year-round interest. A large leaf-shaped lawn in the centre of the garden creates calm and repose.

This has been a wonderful scheme to work on and the combination of a large plot in a beautiful rural setting with few constraints, and very high quality contemporary architecture, has been inspirational. We used 3D computer modelling throughout the design process to ensure that the clients and contractor were able to understand the complex design, and this approach also allowed us to test out the size and shape of the spaces and features to ensure that they would work well when built.

These photos give an idea of the new garden – further pictures will follow in the Spring once the soft landscape is complete and starting to settle in.