Contemporary Designer Garden, Fornham St Martin, Suffolk

Credits

Mike Long
Lead Designer

Genesis Landscapes
Main Contractor

Fornham St Martin, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
Location

Marshalls Category Winner, Association of Professional Landscapers Commended Award
Garden Achievements

Having purchased this beautiful coach house restoration project situated in the heart of Suffolk, our clients commissioned us to design a garden before building works were completed to try and synchronise the completion of all construction work on site. They had two young children who were keen to have a large open space for using their scooters and playing various other wide games, they also wanted areas for relaxing and entertaining.

The garden comprised of three very untidy tiers and was a mismatch of repairs and installs completed over several decades. Littered with broken concrete paving the existing terrace was uneven and had many built-in flower beds with tired and weary planting schemes. A big obstacle was incorporating a deep well within the landscaping, they wanted the well to remain but not to make an overbearing feature from it.

Given that the house was so perfectly symmetrical, this was our chosen starting point for the design. Three tiers remained but were made far more accessible and practical, each with their own areas to explore as you walked through the garden. We incorporated a built-in hot tub, designed to look part of the hardwood decking. The pool of water was kept shallow to allow freezing for winter fun and warmth in the summer sun. The main terrace was broken up with hardwood decking running centrally through it and splashes of purple rendered features were used to create interest in the garden, complementing the existing mature Buddleias and Lavenders.