With its restrained planting palette, this elegant garden emanates calm.
When the owners of this home in Adelaide’s Rose Park approached landscape architect Peter Adley, director of Yardstick Landscapes, and Nick Scaife, fellow director and construction coordinator, they had a very clear vision. “They wanted a structured rear garden with clean lines and green-on-green foliage. For the side garden, they wanted a relaxed, shaded space which would provide a stunning view from the large opening window and window seat,” says Peter.
Peter’s design approach was restrained and ordered, yet softened with foliage. The look is timeless and the perfect complement to the home extension by Glasshouse Projects. “The strong geometry and clever spatial arrangement of the generous back garden expands on the covered alfresco entertaining space. Materials such as the charcoal-coloured concrete paving flow from the home and front garden through to the boundary fence, creating a sense of cohesion,” says Peter.
Yet it is the plants that knit everything together and form the backbone of the garden. “This is a foliage garden with layers of green and just a few flowering plants which all flower white. It is all about texture and structure,” says Peter.
Noted for its ability to thrive in locations of varying light, Japanese box (Buxus microphylla ‘Japonica’) is the main hedging plant. Second-tier hedging is provided by hardy Sandankwa viburnum (Viburnum suspensum).
Japanese aralia (Fatsia japonica ‘Spider’s Web’) was planted with peace lily (Spathiphyllum sp.) en masse in the shaded raised bed. The sleek, dark green leaves of the peace lily are a counterpoint to the variegated, palmate-leafed aralia. Opposite, New Zealand rock lily (Arthripodium cirratum) softens the clipped hedges and hardscape.
The southern wall of the garage faces the alfresco area and provides enough shelter for the emerging Camellia sasanqua (sasanqua camellia) and the potted Japanese maple (Acer palmatum). The ornamental pear tree (Pyrus calleryana ‘Capital’) against the boundary references the front-garden planting and provides screening for the only section of the garden without a view of a tree beyond.
There is also a ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) feature tree which, in time, will provide shade for a charming timber seat where the owners can relax and enjoy the serenity of the leafy, endlessly engaging garden.
“The features we did use are placed on sight lines but we mainly employed plant life instead of artwork. Restraint was critical. We wanted the garden to harmonise with the built form of the modern extension, not detract from it,” says Peter.
It seems Peter and Nick achieved their goal, with the 2022 MLSA Awards of Excellence judges naming Yardstick Landscapes winner of the Residential Landscape Design Under $70,000 category for this serene garden.
For more information
