A Wider than Average Rear Garden with All-Weather Pergola

Modern garden design with contemporary louvred pergola

When our clients moved into their new home, the garden was little more than a barren wide rectangle, except for, what seemed like, acres of artificial grass! Well, maybe not acres as such, but certainly the entire footprint of the garden was very much ‘plastic fantastic’ (not!)

The clients asked us to design a garden that was in keeping with the home’s contemporary interior but softened with different landscaping materials and a more relaxed planting palette.

Garden view back to house with terrace areas connected by dutch paver garden path and floral borders

We used porcelain paving near to the house and smaller Dutch pavers to form a wide path that links with the paved terrace to the rear. The porcelain was also used to edge the sunken pergola terrace, and we used a Moroccan style decorative tile to give a subtle rug effect.

Main terrace and dining area with louvred pergola to capture evening sun

This contemporary pergola means that the garden can be used in all weathers. It offers shade on hot sunny days, and watertight shelter during more inclement weather, thanks to its adjustable louvre roof and full-length blinds that can be pulled down on 3 sides of the structure.

All weather terrace with louvred pergola, surrounded by planting

The pergola is a key element within the design, but to ensure it doesn’t dominate, we surrounded it with planting. Behind the pergola is a large storage unit that is hidden by the raised planter and the batten fencing.

Rear bench terrace as an early morning coffee nook, planted with blueberry and fruit trees

Looking from the pergola (above) your eye is drawn to the rear terrace with its bench seating, a perfect spot to have a morning coffee and read a book. Behind the bench are blueberry bushes and a pleached apple tree – two of our clients’ favourite fruits!

L shaped floral bed with formal lawn and pleached tree privacy on the boundary wall

The large ‘L’ shaped bed with its low hedging is planted with repeat long flowering perennials, and the evergreen pleached trees along the boundary provide extra privacy, as well as structure. In the corner of the terrace is a large veg trug, that in its first season has given a continual crop of small beans, peppers and strawberries.