The Courtyard Garden

This was a small garden designed for a young professional couple with no children or pets. They wanted an area for dining out, entertaining and a water feature (but not a pond), some herbs in pots and no lawn. They liked architectural plants and soft colours so the structural planting includes a Magnolia grandiflora, a Sorbus cashmiriana, Fatsia japonicas and Yucca gloriosas, filling the garden with year-round lush green appeal and interesting shapes. The two hard-landscaping materials used relate to the two colours of stone used in the house, and the curves in the garden create flow and mystery, whilst the static paving provides a calm, relaxing place to sit.