Hertfordshire Garden
The dew pond is a defining element in the garden, a rarity that few other gardens share. This has been used as a focus not just of the garden but as a driving force behind the design solution.The traditional formation of dew ponds was explored in which chalk was ground and mixed into a fine cement which was then spread on the surface of the pond excavation. This led in turn to the creation of elegant, free standing screen walls which frame and sometimes reflect this construction method and use of materials. Screen walls re-appear informally through the garden partly as a means of spatial definition, creating privacy, glimpsed views, colour and light and partly to offer protection to the more delicate planting of the gravel garden.
A wild flower meadow uses species appropriate to this location. Extensive border plantings with a diverse range of perennials and grasses introduce dramatic waves of colour and texture across wide areas of the garden, new hedges replicate the wall structures to create a softer but architectural element and a dry garden habitat provides a sheltered space for dynamic textural plants and bulbs. Driveway planting softens the garden into the setting of Chorleywood Common and screens the house from the road to settle the property as a whole into its local context.
This garden has been featured in The English Garden,
Pro Landscaper and Gardens Illustrated