Family Garden, Knocklyon, Dublin

Understanding of space and place and the people who use them are integral to successful design

No matter what the scale or scope of the project we consider the aesthetics and ecological values of the space to be as important as how the garden functions when designing to suit a growing families needs. A series of garden spaces were considered that could be used by the different family members throughout the day to follow the sun.

A series of welcoming spaces were created for relaxation in the shade and entertaining in the evening sun. The journey through the garden is varied with elements of surprise along the way. A stack bond pattern of gold granite leads you under a Japanese maple underplanted with hakonechloa grasses with sprinkles of spring and summer bulbs. Opposite this we have a pergola planted with clematis and boston ivy to create a sense of enclosure and screen neighbouring views. A gravel area hosts the washing line and allows for a different type of planting providing a transition to the family and group entertaining area.

A certain dynamic is set up between the bands of steps outside the studio/teenage hang out zone and the covered pergola seating area, giving that separation that growing teens need from the adults.

On the eastern boundary a series of planting beds were designed that in time if the wish arises can be converted into home grown vegetable beds as the gardening skills of the family develop.

Blocks of yew hedging are organised strategically to screen the essentials; washing lines and trampolines with the added benefit of providing a dense dark backdrop for a beautifully layered pollinator friendly perennial planting. The youngest wanted a river to run through the garden and we settled on a small pool filled with rainwater that will attract birds and wildlife, oxygenating plants will filtrate the water naturally with indigenous Irish aquatic plants.