Beyond The Ha-ha

Juliet Roberts talks to five designers about how to make your garden merge with the landscape

THE best gardens are undoubtedly those that are both beautiful to the eye and a pleasure to use. Although they should reflect their owner’s sense of style, it’s important that a garden also has a strong sense of belonging to its surroundings.

According to award-winning landscape architect Tom Stuart-Smith, there are no fixed rules about how best to fit a garden into the landscape, however, after interviewing five exceptional designers, several key issues have emerged.

First, consider the horizon and the views you’d like to lead the eye to or away from. Next, think about the hierarchy of how you view the foreground, the middle distance and the backdrop of the landscape, and don’t forget scale and proportions.

Consider materials and how they can make a connection with the local vernacular and, finally, think carefully about your palette of plants and how they can meld the garden into the landscape.

Bear in mind that what you decide to put in can be as important as what you take out. Simon Dorrell, co-owner of Bryan’s Ground in Herefordshire, puts it succinctly: ‘Adhere to Arts-and-Crafts principles: observe and respect the local vernacular, use local materials and embrace Nature and you can’t go wrong.’