Literally Littoral

This garden, constructed from stone, gravel, grit and sand, contains natural-style planting and a water feature that is a ‘rain garden’, fed from a downspout attached to a shed at the back of the garden.

The rain garden is constructed from three linked upcycled steel water tanks or troughs that overflow and drain into a swale that runs down to the front of the garden. The boundary is constructed from upcycled scaffold boards, which also feature in a seating area that contains two star-gazing chairs and is accessed by a grit path. The plants are wind- and salt-tolerant and found in coastal areas in the North West.

It is inspired by the west coast of the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside, where designer Debbie Montgomery has lived all her life. Speaking about the garden Debbie said: “I love natural-style gardening. I try to do my bit for the environment by being as eco-friendly as I can. When I discovered the concept of the rain garden, which filters away heavy downpours to avoid flash flooding, I was keen to incorporate it into my low-maintenance design.”