A Garden Shared is a Garden Doubled

A striking showcase in the clever use of space and design, this garden getaway also sows the seeds for strengthening sibling ties.

When two families decided to build their houses next to each other with both dwellings being mirror image of the other, they came up with the unique solution of pooling their resources in creating a larger garden that both can enjoy. What with space going at a premium, both lots would have otherwise ended up with a narrow strip of lawn each. And it helps that they aren’t just good neighbours but are families of two brothers who take great comfort in having kin close by.

The siblings sought the services of Artistic Landscaping & Furnishing in planning a garden design that would accommodate their needs in terms of style and content. When a garden starts out as a blank slate, the available space can be exploited to best advantage with the final outcome being an outdoor living space that not only embraces key elements that render it both functional and ornamental, but create the illusion of a larger space.

Sharing space and views

Both properties have their own separate gateway into a covered porch which serves as a foyer to their respective front lawn. The combined lawn area which lies in between both houses has a watery oasis, consisting of a duo of cascading pools that culminates in a placid koi pond. A line of golden painted bamboo planted strategically in front of the water garden forms a living privacy screen with a decidedly Oriental-feel, and has the added bonus of providing vertical interest and greenery to an otherwise sterile front patio and driveway. A wraparound porticoed walkway leading from the porch of each house faces each other and abuts the water garden, and serves as a vantage point from which to enjoy a range of sensory pleasures such as the reflected light and sound of moving water while taking advantage of scenery beyond their property lines. With a shared lot, both families are able to borrow the views across the other’s property making the pooled spaces appear larger as a result.

Highlighting the landscape

Blessed with a gently sloping terrain, the properties boast commanding vistas of the surrounding emerald-green fairways, which probably counts as the site’s best kept secret. The lawn terraces in the back yard have been designed to provide comfortable, people-size spaces for relaxing in the outdoors. Low boundary walls, softened by hedgerows of native shrubs and ground covers allow the garden to blend into the surrounding landscape, which the owners can ‘borrow’ to give the appearance of being a part of their outdoor space.

Planning for low maintenance

Paved areas and modest swaths of lawn, the use of a host of heat-loving native plants and an environmentally sound approach to garden design contributes to a manageable landscape.

The water garden with its tumble of cascades and continuous ripples bestows a combination of micro-climatic conditions that the surrounding plants can benefit from; the dappled shade cast by the bamboo screen, the cooler temperature and the stray sprays of water are ideal for moisture-loving plants to flourish in.

Planning for privacy

Converting two gardens into one does not mean that all the spaces are in full view of the neighboring residence. Each property features small lawn areas in the front and back yards to call their own, and which are adorned with pocket gardens that help lend a distinctive look to their respective front and back entryways.

Using shrubs of varying heights beyond the water garden, such as the plantings of the square bamboo and monstera delicosia, help block the view from one end to the other. This technique gives the impression of reducing the length and affording glimpses of the rest of the garden through partially-hidden spaces, and at the same time averting the end result of a solid division.

Creating views from indoors

All three ‘compartments’ – the front and back lawns, and the water garden - are seamlessly linked to the indoors through generous expanses of glass and easy access provided by the porticoed walkway. The inviting views not only enhance the indoor living spaces but entire family members and guests into the outdoors.

The foliage and flowering plant forms around the water garden with its continuous parade of color, shapes and textures are vignettes that visitors will be sure to enjoy. Birds and butterflies will also come to savor some cool refreshment from the gushing tsukubai fountain, or the larger-than-life ornamental carp and frog both spouting water into the pond and lending an element of surprise to first-time strollers.

Combining styles in a single design

The garden design is a casual mix of both the formal and naturalistic styles, with the entire garden functioning as a cohesive whole. Clipped topiary shrubs and hedges fringing the front and back lawns lend an air of formality to the outdoors while the koi pond and cascading pools form the informal garden area. Stepping stones, walkways and short flights of steps provide transitions from one area of the garden to the next. Repeating the use of plants finished in different styles, such as clipped hedges or topiaries are used in the formal, or left to grow naturally are found in the informal, is also a design element that helps tie the garden together.

A large clump of towering lush green square bamboo not only serves as a point of symmetry between the two properties but infuses the informal area with an emphatically naturalistic flavor.

Enhancing space

Space is always a welcome commodity in any suburban lot and this garden is no exception. With the clever use of a variety of landscape design tricks, the eyes can be fooled into believing that the limited spaces are larger than they actually are.

Developing the vertical dimensions in the garden such as by introducing varying heights of plants as provided by low-lying beds and borders and structural plantings such as hedges, or the upright clump of the square bamboo, and the raised bed of mass plantings around the ponds can dramatically alter the look of the garden making it feel larger.

Hidden or partially concealed pocket of spaces such as the bed of flowers and foliage plants in a cozy nook beside the back entryway into the house or a secluded space behind the clump of bamboo and the boundary wall is another clever ploy used in pulling off the illusion of bigger space, as these areas suggest an element of mystery and beckon the visitor to explore what lies out of sight. The faux rocks used to edge the ponds also play host to a rustic assortment of plantings not only make gardening easier but add height, lifting the plants from out of harm’s way such as bicycle wheels or human and dog traffic.

The gently curved paved walkway with its imposing series of columns is another design principle used to make the space appear larger while leading the eye vertically upwards. The flight of steps leading graciously down to the backyard lawn encourages the visitor to pause and appreciate the garden landscape.

This garden design also links one part of the of the property to the next in a sequences of spaces that both families can use and enjoy, giving it an overall sense of expanded outdoor space by demarcating and connecting at the same time such as using the foot bridge to traverse the pond or following the randomly placed concrete pavers around the water garden

The koi pond and the pair of cascading pools, for example, serve not only as a focal point but bisect the garden and provides the structural details to an otherwise plain swath of lawn. They also bring the vista of the surrounding emerald-green fairways into focus.

From the selection of plants to establishing the outdoor spaces and the development of transitions between them, this two-in-one sanctuary underscores the central principle of a unified design layout but strikes an especially sentimental chord when the payoff in pleasure is jointly experienced between two families of brothers housed within a combined garden.