\u00a9 John Campbell<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
It soon became obvious that the garden would need to flow into the surrounding landscape. \u201cThe solutions almost presented themselves, and I ended up subtly choreographing. No corner of the site was left undisturbed in terms of how we could improve it, or work on what was there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chris was able to begin working at the same time as the architect, over a period of three years. \u201cThe result looks as if the contours have been plucked and readjusted, rather than the building imposing itself on the landscape. Visitors struggle to believe that what is in the wider landscape wasn\u2019t already there.\u201d<\/p>\n
The borders<\/h3>\n
$\""Chris\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
\u00a9 John Campbell<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
Much of the house is glazed, with sweeping views, but Chris did not want to guide the eyes to a \u2018principal\u2019 view. \u201cWe decided to play with the idea of the two planting beds, which are enormous in proportion to the path, so that it almost becomes too narrow to walk down, and you feel like you\u2019re stepping into the floral borders.\u201d<\/p>\n
The borders<\/a> feature around 10m x 20m of relaxed, informal, herbaceous planting, punctuated by shrubs<\/a> and around 15 multi-stemmed trees, all chosen to give a long season of interest. The plants are straightforward stock, but resilient, and include Penstemon<\/em><\/a> \u2018Blackbird\u2019, Lavandula<\/em><\/a> x intermedia<\/em> \u2018Grosso\u2019 and Salvia<\/a> nemorosa<\/em> \u2018Caradonna\u2019. The trees and shrubs connect to the landscape and play with perspective \u2013 crab apple<\/a>, Malus<\/em> \u2018Evereste\u2019 and pear<\/a>, Pyrus calleryana<\/em> \u2018Chanticleer\u2019 echo their larger, wilder cousins in the distance.<\/p>\n
Orchards<\/h3>\n $\""Chris\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
\u00a9 John Campbell<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nPart of the land had previously been an orchard<\/a>, so Chris replanted historic and local fruit trees. In the lower orchard, they are grafted on to relatively small rootstocks to allow them to sit quite close to each other. Some of the spoil from the build was used to make a spiral mount, traditionally built in the corners of orchards. \u201cLadies in elegant dresses would ascend a spiral path, stand on the top on a bed of herbs<\/a> and look out from the elevated position.\u201d\n
In the upper orchard, the tree mix is more informal. \u201cWe bought apples that were being grubbed up from old orchards and managed to get some that had been wonderfully distorted and contorted from pruning. There\u2019s also a collection of \u2018drupes\u2019 \u2013 in these parts, you see greengages and damsons<\/a> used as hedgerow<\/a> plants as they\u2019re so good on clay soil.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meadows<\/h3>\n
The orchard areas are underplanted with perennial meadow mixes<\/a>. In the lower orchard, Chris researched the species that would have been on the site 100 years ago. The area is maintained by sheep grazing. \u201cThe idea was to create a landscape, then manage it in a traditional way.\u201d The lower orchard transitions into the upper royal meadow, so called as it is planted with the Royal Meadows Highgrove Mixture (available from Chiltern Seeds and Emorsgate Seeds). \u201cHighgrove has similar conditions to here \u2013 wet in spring, and deep clay.\u201d Some of this meadow is planted (at a depth of 10-20cm) on top of the underground part of the house, so there are skylights within it.<\/p>\n
Lake and dew pond<\/h3>\n
$\""Chris\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
\u00a9 John Campbell<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>The house is cut into the hillside, resulting in thousands of tonnes of spoil. It was used to create a dew pond<\/a> and lake at the bottom of the site. \u201cWe were able to raise the body of the meadow by 1.5m to 2m, to create a lake that is about 1.5m at its deepest point. Surface water from the house is harnessed and gathered, and what we couldn\u2019t tank and use for irrigation flows into the dew pond. Then the dew pond overflows and feeds into the main lake.\u201d The dew pond and lake are planted with native aquatics<\/a> and marginals, and trees that love wet soil, such as black poplar and willow. The water adds to the sense of arrival at the house, and mist often settles atmospherically in this part of the valley.\n
Woodland<\/h3>\n
There were two areas of dense woodland already on the property: an entire bank at the bottom of the site and another parcel below the house. In the latter, everything was on a grid. \u201cThere were too many exotics and many of the trees were etiolated, dead or dying. But we wanted to keep that belt of woodland<\/a> so that as you come up the drive, the house presents itself to you in an elegant way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chris salvaged what he could and removed about 500 struggling trees; he then added the same number of native trees around the wider landscape, including beech<\/a>, oak<\/a>, downy and silver birch<\/a>, crab apple<\/a> and field maple. He made a clearing so that views were opened up, and added bluebells<\/a>, wild garlic and other woodland plants. He also rejuvenated, relaid or reinstated hedges<\/a> throughout the site, again using natives such as hawthorn<\/a>, guelder rose, holly<\/a>, hazel<\/a>, elder<\/a>, dogwood<\/a>, blackthorn and wayfaring tree.<\/p>\n
Fernery<\/h3>\n
$\""Chris\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
\u00a9 John Campbell<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>The clients wanted a sense that the woodland was integrated into the garden. Chris underplanted the trees near the dining terrace with ferns<\/a> and woodland plants. \u201cThe clients can walk out of the house on to sunny terraces or into the shade of the fernery and revitalised woodland in just a few steps.\u201d\n
Find out more about Chris\u2019s work at www.chrisbeardshaw.com<\/a><\/p>\n
Listen to our podcast with Chris Beardshaw<\/a><\/h3> <\/body><\/html>\n
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