Bridgnorth Courtyard Garden Lucy & Chris approached me for a design for their small courtyard garden in early 2024. The family had lived there for several years and the sunken, L-shaped garden had been used as a football pitch, covered in astro turf, with a small seating area in the sunnier section adjacent to the lounge. There was a raised border with some mature planting and some pots with flowers dotted around the space. With the boys no longer needing the space for football, Lucy & Chris wanted to transform their outdoor space into a beautiful area for relaxing and dining, filled with colourful planting which could be viewed as a ‘Garden room’, an extension to their beautiful home. designer Tracy Blackband project type Courtyard Garden Term 9 months client Private Style Modern Mediterranean Garden date 2024 – 2025 Their wish list included a sun terrace in front of the lounge, perfectly positioned for catching the morning and afternoon sun. A dining / cooking terrace in the shadier section, with an outdoor kitchen and a dog shower with running hot and cold water. Chris also wanted an area for his prized ice bath, which he uses daily. Lucy was particularly interested in having lots of planting within the garden, to create a calming oasis for relaxing, entertaining and attracting wildlife into the space. A lot to fit into an area of 85m2. We decided on using Bel Air patterned tiles for the lounging terrace, bordered with Kandla Grey stone pavers, surrounded by planting to add a Mediterranean feel. Pleached Carpinus to give structure and height to the boundary, whilst also allowing the area beneath to be underplanted with sun loving perennials, shrubs and bulbs. The mix of hard landscaping materials, the porcelain tiles, the Kandla Grey pavers, and the Bel Air tiles, were chosen to break up the space and add interest in the different forms and textures each provide. A separate gravelled area with stone paver detailing and planting pockets was also included to add interest and proved an ideal location for a bench to enjoy the shadier, cooler hours of the day. We managed to fit in a generous sized second terrace with a Bari Outdoor Kitchen and a Kadai fire bowl with benches. Nestled within the planting was the ice bath for Chris and a dog shower as requested. The planting comprising cottage garden staple perennials, shrubs and ornamental grasses have been chosen as much for their beauty as their attraction for insects and wildlife, whilst the inclusion of evergreens and underplanting with bulbs will help to extend the flowering season. Both the hard and soft landscaping can be enjoyed during the dullest of winter months.