The Parsley Box Garden

In more detail

• A rich colour palette of yellows, oranges, mauves and burgundies gives the garden its autumnal feel, with flower interest from sanguisorbas, rudbeckias, achilleas and salvias
• Autumn-flowering Heptacodium miconioides, adorned with clusters of sweetly scented, creamy white blooms, brings height to the space, alongside mature fig trees and a striking espalier pear

About the garden

The Parsley Box Garden seeks to champion and empower the over 60s and challenge the outdated stereotypes of ageing. The design is contemporary, sleek and elegant with an outdoor kitchen adjacent to an entertaining space sheltered by a cantilevered pergola and flanked by tiered planters, enabling accessibility for all generations.
 
Inspired by the philosophy of conserving nature’s bounty through fermentation and preservation, the borders are brimming with edibles to forage and bring flavour to dishes, all the while minimising food waste. Fragrant herbs, edible flowers and perennials also feature. Trees including Arbutus unedo, Malus ‘Evereste’, espalier fruit trees and Cornus kousa provide height and scale.

The materials have been carefully selected to subtly bring conversation around ageing to the fore. Aged brass planters allude to maturing with grace and beauty, contemporary smooth structures reference the stability of firm foundations and reclaimed wood hints at the fluidity of changes in identity throughout life.