Over the last few weeks we have been slowly ticking off important jobs within the garden, some with little visible impact, others providing the motivational push that lets us know that the garden is going in the right direction. The weather has been rather flippant, at times we’ve had hot dry spells lasting for weeks followed by drizzle, a dry spell and then a downpour - I suppose we are in Wales. Evenings have been allocated to watering, the yew hedging now revealing the fresh new growth that releases life into the garden, the gaps soon becoming enclosed, gathering to one form.

Recently our attention has been focused on the secluded courtyard. It has been a space that has been left to one side as we tackled other areas of the garden but one that evokes excitement and anticipation. The topiary cubes and trees planted in March are settling into their new positions, softening a space that looked very much like an archaeological dig. The planting beds have been excavated with the paths left as hardcore for practicality. The soil has now been moved into the beds, a slow and methodical process by shovel and barrow but a task we had been waiting to complete for a while; the courtyard already feels more complete.

During the early stages the courtyard sat open to the rest of the garden, its atmosphere disappearing as your eyes wandered across the brook to the woodland. Once planted, the yew hedging changed this atmosphere, no longer was there a continuous sight line across the garden but rather an element of concealment, an area that was out of sight and private. From within, the hedges sit just above the eyeline and will be trimmed to an organic shape, a softness that allows it to blend into the backdrop more sensitively but encloses the space with a deep and textured backdrop.

The courtyard has very much its own identity, designed with a geometric layout it provides strong rhythm and balance. The topiary cubes are arranged in a manner that provides breathing space amongst a heavily planted area, their flat tops providing a strong horizontal plane that will contrast with the vertical height of the plants and provide a sense of weight pulling down to the land. The overhanging elm creates a strong impression as you enter the courtyard, its limbs reaching to cover the back section of planting beds presenting an opportunity to work with a different palette of plants. In small areas the courtyard receives direct sunlight - mainly the middle bed. Directly behind the hedges and under the elm the garden sits in cool shade with only filtered light hitting the soil. We want this part of the garden to feel unique, to home some of our favourite plants and new combinations that we are eager to try. Before writing this, we were both outside in the courtyard where a busy day in the studio found us excited to have a few hours in the evening to arrange some plants into the newly filled beds. Although just a handful, and to no plan, we felt it important to see how they would sit, beginning to understand the tone and atmosphere we felt would work best in this space.