Large, historic country houses call for a garden with the same patina and sense of age as the building – even though the original garden may have to be remodelled if it has become rundown or neglected. Traditional topiary gardens or parterres bring a sense of symmetry and formality, and can be as simple or as elaborate as you like, from chess-board yew topiary to elaborate swirls of box hedging. Wide herbaceous borders and a good old-fashioned kitchen garden will also be the right fit. The surrounding landscape can be as important as the house itself, so consider opening up and framing views, perhaps with an avenue of trees, or creating focal points with statuary or a beautiful specimen tree.
The garden designer Xa Tollemache created at her former home, Helmingham Hall in Suffolk, is widely admired. Her advice for anyone making a traditional country garden is to get to grips with the topography, climate and possible limitations of a site before starting on a design. ‘On a first visit, I look at the features of the landscape, the house and surrounding buildings, and note things that jar. Often the removal of these elements clears the path for a good design.’
Hard landscaping should be sympathetic to the environment, using local or reclaimed stone or brick, and fencing unobtrusive and subtle, such as estate railings or traditional chestnut paling. Xa takes a tiered approach to planting: ‘I would start to plant trees as soon as possible, then look at structural plants such as clipped shrubs for architectural interest. Roses and climbing plants come next, followed by the fluff – beautiful perennials, lavender, grasses, bulbs and annuals to fill in the gaps.’ An old country house should have a garden that feels as though it has been there for years. The skill of a garden designer is to evoke this feeling, working with a light touch and creating subtle interventions, and then to tiptoe away and pretend they were never there.
MAY WE SUGGEST: The magnificent terrace garden of a townhouse in Bruges
Vanessa Bowman
Modern country
Carefully considered planting set against a geometric framework can add contemporary style to a tired space
A barn conversion or newbuild house is often left with a blank canvas of a garden, inviting the creation of a new contemporary-style plot. Modern planting schemes are ideally suited to this 21st-century approach, with bold drifts of perennials and grasses that link the garden to the landscape beyond. Often, designers juxtapose these modern meadows with a strong linear framework, comprising metal-edged beds, geometric infinity pools and square-cut yew or box. Surrounding topiary with ornamental grasses can instantly lift it into a more contemporary realm.
