Restoration of 18th century Cottage & Garden.
Cottage or Garden – which came first?
Viewing Jasmine cottage, circa 1705, the blank canvas of the third of an acre garden with its plethora of outbuildings, including a grade 2 listed barn, ticked the box without setting a foot inside the cottage – dare I admit.
Known affectionately to the villagers as ‘Tony’s House’ the cottage quickly won our affections. Circa 1705, there was much to consider and embrace when considering this project as a whole.
It has to be the garden that first inspired this renovation project. Having outgrown my ‘new build’ garden, a new project was essential to challenge my professional garden design creativity. Embracing historic design templates established by Capability Brown & Gertrude Jekyll – to name a few – the challenge is to make them them work in a this restoration project. This is not a stately Manor House, but previously 2 tied, one-up one-down cottages, with a functional kitchen garden with livestock.
I want to embrace all that 18th century garden design has to offer and blend this with the exciting innovations that gardening in the 21st century can sympathetically entwine. So perhaps this is more of a garden ‘re-creation’ than renovation, but an exciting and informed process it will surely be.
