New Forest Cottage Garden

Project overview

This project involved a complete redesign of the rear garden of a period cottage in Brockenhurst, in the heart of the New Forest. The clients wanted a garden that felt in keeping with the character of the property — natural materials, cottage-style planting, and a practical outdoor space for entertaining.

The existing garden was largely lawn with overgrown borders and no defined seating area. Our brief was to create a generous patio, improve the planting, and add some structure with raised beds and a new lawn.

Our approach

We started with a site visit and design consultation, during which we discussed the clients' priorities, their preferred materials, and the plants they liked. We then produced a planting plan and a detailed quote covering all elements of the work.

The project was carried out in two phases: first the hard landscaping (patio, raised beds, and edging), then the soft landscaping (lawn, borders, and planting). This approach allowed the hard landscaping to settle before the planting was installed.

All materials were chosen to complement the character of the property — natural Cotswold stone for the patio, oak sleepers for the raised beds, and a planting palette of cottage-style perennials, shrubs, and climbing roses.

The outcome

The completed garden is a significant improvement on what was there before. The patio provides a generous entertaining space that flows naturally from the house, and the raised beds add height and structure to the borders. The new lawn is level and well-established, and the planting is already filling out nicely.

The clients were delighted with the result, and we're proud of how well the garden sits within the New Forest landscape.