Formal garden with informal planting in Wentworth, Surrey
This garden illustrates the aesthetically pleasing style of combining a formal landscaping structure with informal planting in the design. This residential garden design and landscaping project in Wentworth, Surrey began with a blank canvas.
The new owner wanted to transform their wide, shallow plot with a pastel planting palette and instant screening to provide privacy. Water features were also specified to provide sound, reflection and focal points. After the initial brief and site visit we created sketches and full-colour designs, along with mood board concepts for the planting scheme and landscaping elements
Water fountain and wildlife pond
A raised circular fountain acts as a fabulous focal point from the rear of the house and terrace. The garden design creates a wonderful vista from the house with a path leading from the terrace to a circular water feature and beyond to a focal point bench. In another area of the garden we built an informal pond to attract wildlife with a secluded seating area for tranquil contemplation.
Privacy with instant trees and hedging
Our client’s garden was overlooked by a house, and to hide the view we planted a mix of mature large-leaved evergreens, including Portuguese Laurel, Magnolia Grandiflora and Holm Oak, which has dark green foliage. These are all ideal for creating structure, screening and year-round coverage.
Creating the illusion of depth
The new layout has created the feeling of greater depth and space in this wide, shallow, rectangular garden. We maximised the borders on either side and minimised them in the foreground and background. A new fountain was also strategically placed as a focal point to draw the eye down the garden.
Informal and formal planting scheme
On either side of the terrace, we created a structured knot garden planted with box. A knot garden is a formal pattern bed, developed in the Tudor period, where plants are separated from each other in the bed by dwarf hedges. The new planting scheme has a pastel palette and an informal, romantic style, with flowers including lavender and a dainty shrub rose with light pink flowers called The Fairy. On the terrace we introduced new climbing plants to cover the loggia and create dappled shade; while topiary provides strong punctuation points and a lovely contrast to the naturalistic planting.
Better drainage and deer resistant planting
Ground in this area of Surrey is known for its heavy, poorly drained soil. Part of the garden was waterlogged, and the answer was to install a drainage system for the lawn. We also chose plants that are tolerant of wet soil conditions or planted in raised beds to improve drainage. The garden is also visited by Muntjac deer, which can cause damage to a wide range of plants. So, we were careful to include garden shrubs and perennials that are less susceptible to damage. You can find a list of deer-resistant plants on the RHS website.
