Cambridgeshire garden

A modern English landscape

Our landscape design will wrap around new modern architecture by award-winning architects, shedkm. Set in a rural idyll, the site is adjacent to a 13th century village church and enjoys sweeping views across the Fens. On the horizon, the spire of another village church can be seen in nearby Fenstanton, resting place of Lancelot 'Capability' Brown.

The design responds to the character and context of the place to create a modern 'English landscape garden'. Design principles of the English Landscape Movement are applied in an imaginative way, with a contemporary eye and modern palette of materials.

Boundaries between house, garden and landscape are integrated and blurred. Views of the neighbouring church and Fenland landscape are concealed and revealed to create a sense of journey, anticipation and drama. Regimented symmetry and linearity in the modern architecture give way to nature's asymmetry in the garden and unfolding landscape.

Planting throughout embraces seasonal change in synch with the surrounding countryside, with native hedgerow boundaries and multi-stem trees offering spring blossom and beautiful autumn colour.

An innovative 600m2 rose meadow creates dramatic views from the main living areas of the house out to the Cambridgeshire countryside.

Restrained and crisp hard landscaping is set against the loose planting. A meandering ‘river’ of freestanding corten steel screens frame a path to the main living areas of the garden. A series of linear water features in corten steel carve through the sawn limestone hardscape of the main terrace, echoing the regimented waterways of the Fens.

This garden will be completed in early 2021 with photographs to follow.