Developing a garden design to link the heritage front of a Victorian house with a newly developed contemporary rear extension was the primary motivation for this project. Planted in two stages and completed over a year ago now, it is a great pleasure to see how the garden has flourished and is looking settled.

The period of house is offset by mass plantings of varying green varieties that sweep around the front of the property and extend to the rear. A combination of Buxus and Westringia spheres nestled amongst soft foliage present a structural element that although considered more traditional plant species, provide a fresh and contemporary aesthetic due to their shaping and arrangement.

With a corner street frontage, a line of Acer ‘crimson sentry’ acts as a deciduous screen down the side of the property, adding a rich deep purple colour to the garden and complimenting the tone of the houses brickwork. Across the front, an informal screen of ‘Forest Pansy’ trees enhances a sense of privacy in the warmer months, whilst the turning of colour in autumn a visual interest.

Tall pencil pines protruding from feature pots, the rear decking and garden beds, compliment the height of the elevated outdoor deck and rear extension. The addition of varying climbers that include Wisteria on the front verandah, Boston Ivy and an Ornamental Grape Vine in the rear, establish a vertical arrangement of greenery that softens the harder architectural features, making them more homely and welcoming.

The space highlights a selection of specimen plantings in both garden beds and striking ornamental pots, including curvaceous Bottle trees and an array of succulents featuring massed, trailing and flowering varieties. More prominent in the rear garden, these specimens are dotted down the side and feature within smaller pots on the front verandah, providing a more contemporary feel that completes the renovation and links the two contrasting facades and periods of this beautiful home.