The Old Bakery, Suffolk

Throughout, the garden has a strong traditional character at its heart, connecting with the heritage of the old bakery. Moving away from the house the garden becomes looser and more informal, touching on the rustic elements of a Mediterranean landscape. Locally sourced brick and flint make up the walls that divide the space, rooting the garden to the crafts and traditions of the area. The courtyard, connected to the house and where a lot of the daily use will take place, is laid mostly to cobbles and paving with some loose pockets of planting and topiary forms. A Magnolia stands in the centre, its canopy broad, providing shade in the hotter months and flower in early spring. On the ground the palette is verdant, subtle and calming. A combined scheme of early flowering bulbs such as Galanthus, Narcissus and Erythronium beginning the season of interest, continued in quick succession by the Summer flowering perennials. A Rosa ‘astra desmond’, trained onto the house using hazel supports, provides a veil that starts to blend the garden with the property and allow a moment in June and July that will transform the courtyard with large clusters of creamy white semi-double flowers and a scent that is enhanced by the enclosed nature of the space. Above the courtyard the garden is controlled by the topiary forms, organic in shape and arranged in a way to create wandering routes through the open gravel. Elevated above the informal arrangement of lavender, Erigerons and Melica, a framework of pleached Crab Apples provide privacy, blossom, produce, Autumn colour and a link to the character of the Old Bakery. Bordering the space, plants such as Roses, Peonies and Anemones combine to create a rich and layered scheme. Gravel paths scattered with plants begin to define a more relaxed and natural space. No longer does the topiary dictate the atmosphere, instead loose and shaggy shrubs such as Myrtus provide the rhythm with scented evergreen foliage and flowers in June. They are the mid layer that conceals and reveals views as you wander the gravel paths. Alongside the paths and set within the gravel the planting changes into a looser more scattered layout. An array of characterful plants such as Thyme, Scabiosa, Nepeta, Pennisetum and Fennel provide combinations of pinks, purples, blues, yellows and silvers mimicking that of the Mediterranean.