Mr and Mrs West had bought a property in a small Cotswold village. They wanted a simple, ‘cottage garden’ style without being over-fussy or precious, with a greater degree of privacy from the neighbours. The new garden was to include a paved area for dining/entertaining, a small lawn, and a vegetable garden.

The design incorporates all of these, borrows the views from the orchard beyond, and softens the elevation of the newly-built house with a wisteria-covered oak pergola. The gravel path presents a ‘journey’ past the woodland planting, around the exuberant perennial planting of the central bed and back to the lawned area. The ‘secret’ garden between the existing outhouses offers a private, calm and sunny retreat.