Full Garden Design & Build

The Hay Barn, South Yorkshire

This project began with a brief to create a contemporary garden that was low-maintenance, yet gave the owners a more inviting space to relax and entertain. The existing layout was simple - a patio leading onto a lawn, shrubs to one side, a row of trees at the bottom, and two oversized railway-sleeper raised beds with a shed and utility area in the corner. Our aim was to bring structure and interest to the space while keeping the planting easy to manage.

We began by defining the patio, building two custom Corten steel raised beds to separate it from the lawn and planting them with perennials and ornamental grasses for movement and year-round interest. New beds were cut in on either side — one with a Douglas fir trellis, custom designed and built, supporting a star jasmine with Carex grasses beneath; the other anchored by a multi-stemmed Amelanchier lamarckii as a feature tree, underplanted with evergreen grasses.

The vegetable area was given form with an evergreen hedge and stepping stones along its edge, while the utility space was screened from view. Corten and steel edging was used throughout to draw a clean line between lawn and border, and beneath the trees at the bottom of the garden we introduced shade-tolerant evergreen shrubs — low-lying planting that will knit together and fill the space over time.

The finishing details tie the scheme together: the perimeter fence refreshed in charcoal grey, the new screen picked out in a softer willow green, and fresh gravel laid throughout. The result is a considered, resilient garden that works great as an entertaining space, or to relax on a slower weekend.