The owners of this contemporary space hired landscape designer Henry Scott to turn an unusable, sloping section of their side yard into a spot where they could relax and entertain. They also needed help siting and designing around a newly purchased backyard studio and home office.
The couple found Scott on Houzz. They were matched with a number of landscape designers while searching for local professionals and, after reviewing them all, picked Scott to tackle their tricky plot.
Before Photo
Kate Burt
Photos by Henry Scott
Yard at a Glance
Who lives here: A retired couple with older children who’ve just moved out
Location: Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England
Size: 2,690-square-foot (250-square-meter) side yard on a one-third acre property
Landscape designer: Henry Scott of Pehrsson Scott
Before: The yard before the redesign was pretty unusable due to the slope, Scott says. “Before we started, it dropped down by almost 6½ feet.”
Here, you can see the owners’ new backyard office, which they had already purchased before contacting Scott. He was tasked with incorporating it into the redesigned outdoor space. “They couldn’t work out where it would fit and not look completely out of place, so we plotted it on the plan,” he says.
This photo of the studio newly in situ highlights the issues its arrival presented. The uneven ground created a gap below the structure and a lack of smooth access.
Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
After: Scott solved this by creating steps and covering them in the same tiles as the patio. He also chose materials and colors in the landscape to tie in with the structure.
The owners wanted something modern and light that was a mix of Mediterranean- and Asian-inspired styles. “Trying to blend olive trees with [maples] was a challenge,” Henry says with a smile, “but in the end we pulled it off and the trees were really where the two styles came from.”
The yard has two main zones: this one, which is sunny, and an area around the side of the house, which is shadier. To tie together the two sides, Scott included dwarf mountain pine (Pinus mugo, USDA zones 2 to 7; find your zone) and Sesleria, an evergreen grass, in both sections of the space.
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Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
As this zone is both sunny and closest to the home’s kitchen, it lent itself to being the sociable part of the landscape. The new home office is perpendicular to the back of the house and effectively creates a courtyard. “A garden building can really change the dynamic of a [landscape],” Scott says.
Taking a cue from the anthracite gray color of the structure, Scott chose varying shades of gray for the patio furniture and hardscaping, lending a contemporary look. Two different types of porcelain tile feature here: a wood-effect design makes up the stepping stones (see next photo) and covers the area beneath the sofa. The main patio is a clean-lined, very pale gray design for a crisp, modern finish.
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Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
Stepping stones lead from the sunny patio across a new lawn. This area is — only very loosely, Scott is eager to explain — the Asian-inspired area, as it’s the shadier of the two zones and supports the maple trees’ dappled light preference.
Here, Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra, zones 4 to 9) spills onto the stepping stones, while a fledgling star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides, zones 8 to 10) has been trained to eventually cover the brick wall behind.
The sunnier patio takes on the more Mediterranean look and features plants that cope well with strong sun. Scott planted a trio of cypress trees (Cupressus sp.) in front of the fence. Also planted in the area are three olive trees (Olea sp.), plus purpletop vervain (Verbena bonariensis, zones 7 to 11) and agapanthus, both of which are bee-friendly.
Caution: Purpletop vervain can reseed and may be invasive in your area. Check with a landscape professional or local cooperative extension or county extension office before planting.
Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
The view up the path shows one of the olive trees at the end, as well as the tops of the dwarf pines, seen earlier. The tree in the foreground is a Japanese maple (Acer palmatum, zones 5 to 8).
10 Trees Landscape Designers Love
Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
Scott advises that a path like this, which has grassy sections of around 6 inches between the pavers, is best maintained using a string trimmer or mower every couple of weeks.
Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
The kitchen doors overlook the sunny patio. “Previously, there were no steps here,” Scott explains. “The top step is where the old step finished and the lawn started. We excavated that section and raised the lower section.” From this angle, you can see across the yard to the shadier zone along the side of the kitchen.
Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
More grasses soften the ground around one of the olive trees.
Pehrsson Scott Ltd.
Scott installed a new slatted fence made of Siberian larch to match the wood of the office studio. Running the length of the yards, it helps to unite the two zones.
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