Moon Gate.
grow your own
A village council in the Cotswolds commissioned a public garden for local residents to reconnect with nature and grow with the community.
Bordering a large woodland, an uncultivated and unloved landscape, overgrown with nettles and brambles, was to be transformed into a multi-sensory garden.
Opportunities for learning, a ‘grow your own’ lifestyle, and cross-generation social bonding underpinned our design.
collaborative gardening and organic living
Materials & Planting.
As an ongoing and evolving community-run project, the garden needed to be relatively cost effective and low maintenance.
Woodland planting, borrowed from the surrounding landscape, allows native wildlife to naturally thrive in the newly designed space.
Locally sourced drystone walling is an economical and sustainable hard landscaping solution. Its myriad of nooks and crannies are a haven for mosses, lichens, and creatures to nestle in.
an ‘open’ allotment design
Raised vegetable and herb patches are dispersed along the pathways in an intriguing pine-bark pattern.
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A companion planting scheme, placing vegetables with complementary herbs, maximises the yield of fresh, locally grown produce.
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The community chicken coup encourages engagement and provides learning opportunities, with the added benefit of free-range eggs!
contemplative spot
A multi-functional pond forms the central hub of our design and offers further sensory stimulation. The community can enjoy moments of reflection and views across the landscape from this contemplative spot.
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One half of the pond is a haven for fauna with marginal planting, dappled shade, slopes, and crevices. The other half is shallow with gentle jets for ambient sounds.
A feature moon gate symbolises the garden and community's connectivity and life cycle.
The locally crafted moon gate adds a naturalistic, rustic charm to connect the garden with the bordering woodland.
