Walled Garden Design
Usually the preserve of large country homes, walled gardens are a statement piece that offer both a practical and aesthetic character to a garden. They offer a secluded retreat for both humans and plants alike.
The tall brick or stone walls that characterize walled gardens provide protection from predators and external elements establishing their very own unique microclimate. Although only a few degrees warmer, fruit can ripen earlier, and flowers can bloom for longer, whilst also allowing for a more exotic breadth planting. The microclimate can be further enhanced by incorporating the ultimate inbuilt heating system, a ‘hot wall’ where a coal furnace is embedded into the brickwork creating optimum heat for plants and produce to thrive.
Dating back over 200 years, the very first Walled Garden was created in 1815. The early Persian geometric design carved out four quarters separated by walkways with a water feature located centrally. Popular in Victorian times these extensive gardens produced an array of expensive produce, often exotic plants brought back from lavish trips abroad. The tall high walls provided security from unwanted intruders and predators on their much sought-after plots of land.
Walled flower gardens were also appreciated at the time, although not as popular as vegetable gardens, they provided quiet, contemplative spaces to enjoy. A variety of traditional English plants and flowers such as elegant roses and sweet peas clambered up the tall walls with colourful plants and shrubs nestled neatly in to surrounding linear borders, woven intricately into the overall design.
There are many resplendent walled gardens across England waiting to be discovered and explored. One of the most historic is The Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall where heritage fruit, vegetables, salad and herbs provide fresh produce to the Heligan Kitchen. Rediscovered in 1990 from an overgrown ‘lost’ garden, it became one of Europe’s largest garden restoration projects. A little closer to home, you can find West Dean in West Sussex featuring a magnificent Edwardian kitchen garden with a multitude of fruit, vegetables and flowers within the classic geometric design.
Graduate Landscapes have designed and constructed traditional and contemporary walled garden designs. Walled Garden designs can evolve and transform, with the introduction of contemporary and modern design features as well as traditional ones. You can explore materials and colours to create a stunning backdrop and structural framework for an array of plants, flowers, and produce. Whilst also providing an intimate and beautiful space in which to socialise.
