The owners of this property are fabulous hosts – she is a great cook - and they enjoy turning any occasion into a party. The garden makeover was about re-designing the space for the least possible outlay, to make it more amenable for friends and familyto gather together and share delicious food and beverages. It was also about changing needs as the clients’three sons had become adults – although some lawn was still required for the next generation.

When she tackled this design, Glenys found herself increasingly influenced by a recent trip to visit her daughter who lives in Naples, Italy. Etched on her mind were memories of spending the happiest of times sitting under a pergola or bower or trained tree, on simple furniture, eating and drinking, but mainly just enjoying being together. The built structures weren’t large, stately patios, but rather modest, simple, light structures – sometimes even flimsy, and it was the grape or lemon or wisteria growing on them that gave an enduring sense of pleasure.

Positioning the table and framing it in some way therefore became paramount. Screening it from the road and making sure it caught the late afternoon sun from the west seemed sensible,while using the far reach of the garden had the apparent effect of enlarging the space.

Original picket fences were retained butthe clients’ sons were enlisted to demolish the unit pavers. Expert rock mason, Sky Vea and his team did the rock paving and theteam soon realised that the address, Volcanic Street,explained why the steps leading to the B and B downstairs were odd sizes. An enormous rock in the garden serves as a constant reminder.

Neil Wellsford ofMetalwerksconfirmed that light steel– painted but designed to rust – would be an idealchoice for multiple uses in a property that already had picket fences and plenty of light-coloured paint. Glenys says the pattern for the inserts in the large frames was literally the result of a free-hand scribble. Neil also made the table and the vegetable garden frames.

Plants were repositioned and re-grouped wherever possible into more aesthetically pleasing arrangements where conditions suited them better, allowing them to flourish and making maintenance much easier. The orchard will be further developed in the future.