Landscape Design
Patio of the Week
Urban Gardens
Yard of the Week: Year-Round Color in a Courtyard Retreat
Terraced decking and lush, scented plantings create a haven where the homeowners can relax and entertain
When a “plantaholic” who likes to socialize inherited a small backyard with scant greenery and broken paving, there was only one thing to do: call in landscape designer Pippa Schofield and ask her to create an entertaining space surrounded by masses of colorful plantings.
The owner already had the table and chairs, but they were rather worn, so Schofield revived them with the same paint used on the deck to create an inviting dining spot. “They looked dreadful. It’s amazing what a coat of paint can do,” she says.
The team built several raised beds to make space for the lush plantings the owner wanted. The one to the right of the steps is topped with Yorkstone (a type of sandstone) coping, “to create a useful extra little seating area,” Schofield says.
The bed contains a hibiscus tree — one of the few specimens that was in the original yard — which Schofield moved from the back wall. The purple flowers are ‘Rozanne’ cranesbill (Geranium ‘Rozanne’), and the frothy white-and-dark-pink ones are ‘Hot Lips’ sage (Salvia microphylla ‘Hot Lips’), a plant that, Schofield says, “flowers its socks off all summer.”
The team built several raised beds to make space for the lush plantings the owner wanted. The one to the right of the steps is topped with Yorkstone (a type of sandstone) coping, “to create a useful extra little seating area,” Schofield says.
The bed contains a hibiscus tree — one of the few specimens that was in the original yard — which Schofield moved from the back wall. The purple flowers are ‘Rozanne’ cranesbill (Geranium ‘Rozanne’), and the frothy white-and-dark-pink ones are ‘Hot Lips’ sage (Salvia microphylla ‘Hot Lips’), a plant that, Schofield says, “flowers its socks off all summer.”
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Schofield packed in lots of plants while leaving plenty of space for socializing. “The idea is that it’s an all-year-round entertaining space, so it’s surrounded by quite colorful planting that has good presence all year — lots of scent, lots of color and lots of things going on,” she says. “It’s all pinks, purples and whites, which I thought would go well with the pale blue.”
The built-in planter around the corner at the back is quite deep and holds several fragrant plants, including ‘Madame Alfred Carrière’ climbing rose (Rosa ‘Madame Alfred Carrière’) and star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides).
There are also lots of pots clustered near the raised beds throughout the courtyard, which create a soft edge. “We put irrigation into the pots — a pipe that goes round — so the owner doesn’t have to water them all,” Schofield says.
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The built-in planter around the corner at the back is quite deep and holds several fragrant plants, including ‘Madame Alfred Carrière’ climbing rose (Rosa ‘Madame Alfred Carrière’) and star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides).
There are also lots of pots clustered near the raised beds throughout the courtyard, which create a soft edge. “We put irrigation into the pots — a pipe that goes round — so the owner doesn’t have to water them all,” Schofield says.
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The old paving was scrappy and uneven, but it was nice Yorkstone, so Schofield salvaged some to use by the gate that leads into the yard.
She brought in some long-flowering and evergreen plants to create a nice vista year-round. The tall plant with pale pink flowers on the right is oleander. “It’s a really good plant for this country in the sense that it flowers a bit later — in June, July and August — and has evergreen foliage,” she says.
The star jasmine is also evergreen, as are the Pittosporum shrubs in some of the beds. “They get lost among the summer planting but provide nice, ball-shaped topiary in the winter,” Schofield says.
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She brought in some long-flowering and evergreen plants to create a nice vista year-round. The tall plant with pale pink flowers on the right is oleander. “It’s a really good plant for this country in the sense that it flowers a bit later — in June, July and August — and has evergreen foliage,” she says.
The star jasmine is also evergreen, as are the Pittosporum shrubs in some of the beds. “They get lost among the summer planting but provide nice, ball-shaped topiary in the winter,” Schofield says.
How to Get a Lush Look on Your Patio With Container Gardens
The owner already had this bench; Schofield just gave it a coat of blue paint “to make it zing,” she says. It creates a spot away from the main entertaining areas for having a quiet chat or a peaceful drink.
The frilly flowers seen here are penstemon (Penstemon sp.).
The frilly flowers seen here are penstemon (Penstemon sp.).
Hydrangeas in pots soften the area around the steps. There are blue ones on this side …
… and white on the other.
Schofield made good use of the split levels. “As soon as you bring a change of levels into a garden and use those levels differently, you have that sense of moving from one room to another,” she says.
But she did make the transition between levels easier. “Originally, there were just two deep, narrow steps here,” she says. “We put in three much wider steps to give easier access and make the top deck feel part of the lower deck.”
Schofield made good use of the split levels. “As soon as you bring a change of levels into a garden and use those levels differently, you have that sense of moving from one room to another,” she says.
But she did make the transition between levels easier. “Originally, there were just two deep, narrow steps here,” she says. “We put in three much wider steps to give easier access and make the top deck feel part of the lower deck.”
The trellis is painted a slightly different gray-blue than the wall behind it, to complement the sofa cushions. “We chose the fabric to match the house color, then had the trellis color mixed,” Schofield says.
There’s a shelf just behind the sofa where the owners can add potted plants or rest a glass of wine. Subtle lighting means the space can be used after dark. “There are lights around the sofa, and [the owners] also put tea lights on the shelf behind,” Schofield says.
Sofa fabric: Sunbrella
There’s a shelf just behind the sofa where the owners can add potted plants or rest a glass of wine. Subtle lighting means the space can be used after dark. “There are lights around the sofa, and [the owners] also put tea lights on the shelf behind,” Schofield says.
Sofa fabric: Sunbrella
The owners aren’t the only ones who enjoy the new design. “The day the cushions arrived, the dog [shown here] jumped straight on,” Schofield says.
The bench contains storage; it’s not waterproof, but it does the job for garden paraphernalia. There’s a waterproof shed on the top deck for storing cushions and anything else that needs to be kept dry (see next photo).
The project wasn’t without its challenges. “It’s always difficult working in a small space. You have a huge amount of mess,” Schofield says. “We were lucky to have access through the gate, so we didn’t have to go through the house, but the access is compromised, so just digging everything out and moving all the materials was difficult.”
The bench contains storage; it’s not waterproof, but it does the job for garden paraphernalia. There’s a waterproof shed on the top deck for storing cushions and anything else that needs to be kept dry (see next photo).
The project wasn’t without its challenges. “It’s always difficult working in a small space. You have a huge amount of mess,” Schofield says. “We were lucky to have access through the gate, so we didn’t have to go through the house, but the access is compromised, so just digging everything out and moving all the materials was difficult.”
The results, though, are worth the trials. “The owners just love the idea it’s this barefoot space they can literally just walk out on to enjoy the garden,” Schofield says. “They’re right among the planting, and it’s perfectly accessible all year.”
She adds that the big difference for them “is that they never used their garden before. Now they use it all the time.”
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She adds that the big difference for them “is that they never used their garden before. Now they use it all the time.”
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Tour more landscapes
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Shop for your outdoor spaces
Who lives here: A couple with older children
Location: London
Size: Upper deck: 254 square feet (24 square meters), 13 by 19½ feet (4 by 6 meters); lower deck: 312 square feet (29 square meters), 16½ by 19½ feet (5 by 6 meters)
Designer: Pippa Schofield Garden Design
The yard wasn’t in great shape, but the owner had a clear idea of what she wanted. “She’d had a holiday in the States, and they’d stayed in a place that had a deck you could walk out onto,” Schofield says. “She said, ‘That’s my dream: I want to be able to walk barefoot and be surrounded by plants.’ I said, ‘In that case, we need to build you a deck.’”
The decking covers two levels, which are roughly split into dining and lounging areas. “The top deck is nice for having breakfast, then the way the light goes, the owners use the sofa and lower deck for afternoon and evening entertaining,” Schofield says.
She painted the decking dark gray as a foil for the pink and purple plants. The exterior of the house is pale blue, so some of the backyard walls have been painted to match, with the rest of the honey-colored bricks left bare.
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