Dorset Coastal Country Garden
This beautiful spot in the Dorset countryside was already pretty glorious. It stretches down to the sea, and from the bottom of the property, it’s a five minute walk to a lovely secluded beach. From the garden, there are some spectacular views out to sea one way and sweeping hills the other.
The clients approached me after I’d worked on a previous garden for them, so it was lovely to work for them again a few years later. The garden design has evolved slowly over the past few years with a lot of client involvement to ensure we keep the sense of the place as it was when the client enjoyed summers here as a boy, visiting his grandparents. Now, with a young family of his own, he wants to rejuvenate the space, so his children can enjoy what is a truly magical place by the sea.
The house has been completely renovated sympathetically but with a more modern feel with a kitchen/diner extension by van Ellen+Sheryn Architects, taking centre stage. The gardens sweep away from the house, working with the dramatic levels, with limestone steps and terraces nestling into the landscape, softened with lots of planting.
The old trout pond has become a simple reflection pool, with a water spout for some gentle sound. The new pool draws the eye down through the tree lined walkway to the summerhouse and the landscape, to the Jurassic coastline and the sea beyond.
On the site of the old garden building at the back of the garden, a new summerhouse has been built - for guests, for studio space, for yoga and as a general landing point after coming up from the beach below, with a new sauna next door to warm up in after a chilly swim.
Winding down past the summerhouse is a new wild life pond, and a camp fire area, with bespoke furniture made by a local carpenter and sculptor.
A large existing area of lawn has been re-turfed as a level sports pitch and we’ve added a pavilion for half-time oranges and cricket teas. The sloping bank now has a 7 m slide from the top walkway down on to the pitch for speedy access whilst others can take the more pedestrian set of wooden and gravel steps which curve down amidst the wild flower planting.
Back towards the house, there are two new limestone terraces for dining and seating. The dining terrace can be reached directly from the glass kitchen extension whilst the seating area steps down from the walkway around the extension, with views out over the garden and the reflection pool, and to the sea below.
The existing swimming pool has had an upgrade; it is now heated and is longer and wider and has a large pergola at one end for sitting in the shade, with a long formal flower bed to one side, with a set of wooden pillars for climbers running along side. There is a little perch above the pool area, looking out to the hills opposite and is the perfect spot for a quiet sundowner.
Lots of new wildflower turf and seed has been used to give the gardens a feeling of the country especially at the further reaches of the property, around the wildlife pond and camp fire area, and these already feel as though they’ve always been here. The more formal gardens around the house will need to bed in a little more to have that timeless quality.
Images to be updated at next site visit.
All landscaping done by Little Fones Landscaping Ltd
