Crab Apple Trees Set Off a Stylish English Courtyard
A structure of pleached crab apple trees, bordered by a wildflower meadow, links a minimalist addition to an old house in Buckinghamshire
Set within 2 acres of pristine woodland, this detached house in England’s Buckinghamshire County did not lack outdoor space. “We just needed to organize it better,” says Stefano Marinaz, who redesigned the front part of the garden. “The owners were parking their cars right in front of the kitchen window!”
With a modernist addition planned for the side of the circa-1900 house, it was the perfect time to rethink the exterior. “The new [addition] off to one side would naturally create a courtyard effect,” Marinaz says, “so I wanted to link it to the existing house using this garden space.”
An ingenious mix of structured trees, stone paving, and lush wildflower and perennial planting has done just that. Now it’s bye-bye to cars, and hello to beautiful blossoms, bees and butterflies.
With a modernist addition planned for the side of the circa-1900 house, it was the perfect time to rethink the exterior. “The new [addition] off to one side would naturally create a courtyard effect,” Marinaz says, “so I wanted to link it to the existing house using this garden space.”
An ingenious mix of structured trees, stone paving, and lush wildflower and perennial planting has done just that. Now it’s bye-bye to cars, and hello to beautiful blossoms, bees and butterflies.
A wildflower meadow was planted just outside the courtyard space, while within it, flanked by pleached crab apple trees, there are beds filled with perennials. “We got rid of the grass,” Marinaz says. “There’s plenty at the back of the house where the kids play ballgames, just before the woodland.” A hedge of common hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) runs along the fence line.
Marinaz used colors designed to merge the addition with the existing house. The addition is clad in shou-sugi-ban — burnt sugi boards. This traditional Japanese siding technique uses carbonized cedar boards that are resistant to rot and fire, and have a silver sheen. “To tie in with this and the older part of the house, I’ve used black and white tones, and added in some deep purple shades too,” he says.
This image taken in late April shows the perennial beds blooming with tulips. Flower varieties in the beds include Tulipa ‘Angels Wish’ and ‘Queen of the Night’, Geranium phaeum ‘Samobor’, and Sambucus nigra ‘Black Lace’.
In the terra-cotta pots are Helleborus orientalis, Sarcococca confusa and Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’.
In the terra-cotta pots are Helleborus orientalis, Sarcococca confusa and Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’.
Color weaves through the scheme but not simply on flowers. “I like to bring in color on the foliage or with berries too,” Marinaz says.
Discover how to create a cottage-style garden
Discover how to create a cottage-style garden
BEFORE: The space was grass and used for parking cars. “By moving the cars farther away from the house, we could then create an attractive garden in the front,” he says.
BEFORE: A modern addition was added to the house, and Marinaz came on board to design the garden in front of it about the same time.
BEFORE: Here, the addition has been clad with its distinctive dark wood, and the garden is taking shape.
BEFORE: This image, taken while the garden was being redesigned, shows how the crab apple trees define the courtyard space. “They link the [addition] to the original part of the house,” Marinaz says.
The pleached Malus ‘Evereste’ crab apple trees measure 12½ feet high and 4½ feet wide, with five tiers branching off a bare 4-foot trunk.
The pleached Malus ‘Evereste’ crab apple trees measure 12½ feet high and 4½ feet wide, with five tiers branching off a bare 4-foot trunk.
AFTER: Each of the 11 crab apple trees was fitted with an uplight, so the whole area can be illuminated at night. “The York stone paths also have lights fitted into them,” Marinaz says.
In spring, the crab apple trees are covered in blossoms (this picture was taken in mid-April). In autumn, tiny crab apples cling to the branches. “You cut back new growth in the autumn because you want the trees to keep the pleached form; otherwise they will grow like normal trees,” Marinaz says. “So you prune the sides and top. The canopy gets denser but remains within this neat shape.”
Astrantia major ‘Shaggy’ and Allium sphaerocephalon bloom in the wildflower meadow in early July. The grass is Molinia caerulea ‘Karl Foerster’.
There are several key benefits to planting a wildflower meadow, Marinaz says. “The first is that it’s almost maintenance-free. You cut it all back in late autumn, after the flowers have gone to seed, then leave the cut plants on the ground for two weeks, so the seeds can disperse back into the soil. You then remove all the cut-down planting, and the meadow regenerates with even more plants next year.”
There are several key benefits to planting a wildflower meadow, Marinaz says. “The first is that it’s almost maintenance-free. You cut it all back in late autumn, after the flowers have gone to seed, then leave the cut plants on the ground for two weeks, so the seeds can disperse back into the soil. You then remove all the cut-down planting, and the meadow regenerates with even more plants next year.”
Another benefit of a wildflower garden is the minimal irrigation it requires. “You have to water it in the first year when it’s establishing, but after that, you don’t have to irrigate it at all,” Marinaz says. It also attracts insects. “Bees, butterflies and even dragonflies love it!” he adds.
Here’s the wildflower meadow in early June, peppered with ox-eye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare).
Two years after planting, the perennial beds in early June are full of flowers and lush growth.
Among the plants here are Astrantia major ‘Claret’, Allium stipitatum ‘Mount Everest’ and Hakonechloa macra.
Among the plants here are Astrantia major ‘Claret’, Allium stipitatum ‘Mount Everest’ and Hakonechloa macra.
The perennial planting within the courtyard includes tall Molinia caerulea ‘Karl Foerster’ grasses. “They give a bit of height to these beds,” Marinaz says. “The [addition] is quite minimal, so we wanted to filter and soften it a bit, but without planting a solid evergreen block that would obscure it. The grasses are transparent.”
As the perennials grow and gain height, the house is more or less obscured by the planting. “They come up gently, so you get different views of the house as the seasons change,” he says. This image was taken in late September.
The plants include Actaea simplex ‘Atropurpurea Group’, Hakonechloa macra, Astrantia major ‘Shaggy’ and ‘Claret’, and Aster divaricatus.
As the perennials grow and gain height, the house is more or less obscured by the planting. “They come up gently, so you get different views of the house as the seasons change,” he says. This image was taken in late September.
The plants include Actaea simplex ‘Atropurpurea Group’, Hakonechloa macra, Astrantia major ‘Shaggy’ and ‘Claret’, and Aster divaricatus.
Marinaz’s watercolor shows how the garden will eventually look. “At the base of the trees, we’ve planted Christmas box,” he says. It’s difficult to find this as a really mature plant, so it hasn’t grown up in these photographs, but this image shows how the box will look in a few more years. “It will eventually reach [3 feet] high,” Marinaz says.
Originally, there was a fence stretching between the garage and the house. “It was like a straight line across the property,” Marinaz says. “I wanted to soften this divide between front and back.”
BEFORE: “The fence was just going to rot and deteriorate,” Marinaz says. Replacing it with a series of yew hedges “brings a green element all year round.”
AFTER: The yew hedges are planted in a sequence. “It creates a buffered area, so you meander through them,” Marinaz says. “Sometimes you see what’s behind, then you don’t. It blurs boundaries.”
The uplights at the base of each crab apple tree “are attached to the trunk of the tree with a strap,” Marinaz says. “This means that as the Christmas box below grows, you can move the light up the trunk without damaging the tree.”
The light will still be hidden inside the shrub but not completely smothered by it, so it can still beautifully illuminate the tree. “It’s a simple, flexible way of adjusting the lights,” the designer says.
The light will still be hidden inside the shrub but not completely smothered by it, so it can still beautifully illuminate the tree. “It’s a simple, flexible way of adjusting the lights,” the designer says.
All the outside lights are LEDs. “You can choose the color temperature you like,” Marinaz says. “We went for 3,000 Kelvins, which gives a warm white light.”
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Before and After: Front Lawn to Prairie Garden
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Who lives here: A family of five
Location: Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, England
Garden size: This design sits within a 2-acre plot that includes woodland
Designer: Stefano Marinaz of Stefano Marinaz Landscape Architecture
The garden at the front of this house is now just over 3 years old. “We started work on it in November and finished mid-January,” Marinaz says. The courtyard garden links a contemporary addition with the house. This image shows the garden in early July.