family garden, south dublin
This new-build house in South County Dublin has a generous west-facing garden, but was a blank canvas apart from the existing shed. There was also a raised foundation opposite the shed, which needed to be incorporated into the design.
The priority for this garden was to soften the new build architecture, and create a verdant, characterful space with different zones for grown-ups and children.
Immediately outside of the house is a welcoming soft seating area, which is designed to feel like an extension of the house. This leads onto a formal lawn bordered by planting.
The client wanted to have places to sit in the garden that would feel removed from the house, so on the right hand side is a south-facing bench, set in a gravel area, flanked by bay laurel hedges and partially obscured from view by a tree in a low raised bed. At the end of the garden is an in-built bench set in its own peaceful zone beyond the lawn.
A row of Arbutus unedo, a beautiful evergreen native tree, have been placed to screen the school building visible over the rear wall, and to provide more privacy from neighbouring houses.