Whitehall Gardens 

Location | London

The image of an autumnal Canadian forest was the brief given to us by the owners of this central London home to create their ideal garden.

With that in mind, the new garden was designed to accommodate not just an ornamental woodland but also to include two terraced spaces, the first one a natural extension of the kitchen where the barbecue is located, and the second much larger one hidden behind the trees at the back of the garden. A wooden structure resembling the core of a derelict building frames the back terrace and supports a Crittall-style window which mirrors the one in the house.

Mature specimens of Birch (Betula sp.) and Maple (Acer sp.) trees were selected to provide instant screening, creating a dappled shade which allows for a rich understorey of flowering evergreen and deciduous species such as Brunnera sp., Gillenia trifoliata, Viola odorata, Digitalis grandiflora, Helleborus sp., Geranium nodosum, Actaea japonica, Daphne laureola and Hakonechloa macra.

Bespoke low voltage hanging lights are located in all of the garden trees whilst a line of low voltage spike lights creates an ethereal glow under the shrub planting.