Best of Both Worlds

Did you know...

• More than 20 apprentices including students in landscape studies, countryside management, garden design and apprentices working in the horticultural industry have worked together under the direction of the designer to craft a garden with two distinct halves, each challenging them with different landscaping requirements
• The soft, pastel palette in the cottage garden incorporates two trees, a crab apple and Acer campestris. Three roses provide focal point planting  Rosa 'Queen of Sweden', R. 'Gentle Hermione' and R. Wildeve. Lavender, Nepeta, Perovskia, Thymus 'Silver Posie' and Erigeron
  karvenensis add scent, colour and texture.
• Yellow, green, blue and pops of red provide a more simplified colour palette in the contemporary side of the garden. Here the linear landscaping design belies the more technical landscaping skill required to create the design

About the garden

This space is designed for an imaginary couple, Jack and Sam, who have a small garden but differing tastes. To keep each other happy, they've split the garden into two equal halves. Jack’s side is more traditional with a country-garden feel and a palette of blues, purple and pinks, while Sam’s is more contemporary with a simpler mix of green foliage and golden grasses.

Each of the gardens has a water feature, chosen to reflect the style of the space they are in. The hard landscaping is also carefully selected to match each design, with riven paving and warm-toned bricks on the traditional side, and sawn-edged dark pavers on the contemporary.

The garden is created by landscaping apprentices, trainees and students on BALI’s GoLandscape initiative, supported by the RHS, which encourages young people to pursue a career in horticulture. The young designers, landscapers and contractors are mentored by leading industry figures, and have gained invaluable experience working alongside renowned designer Rosemary Coldstream and David Dodd of The Outdoor Room.