A masterclass in city garden design from Non Morris
Behind a row of Victorian houses on a quiet street in south London is a contemporary, two-storey house with high brick walls and a pocket-sized garden, built on the site of a former industrial yard. When the current owner, a composer, bought it in 2017, he invited its architect, Mary Duggan, to design a music studio. Positioning this along the shadiest boundary wall, she maximised space for musical equipment by designing its two curving walls to meet in a bay window overlooking the garden. The buildings are linked visually by hard-landscaping materials, partially reclaimed from the original plot: bricks for the terrace, plus textured concrete for the front path and stepping stones to the studio. ‘Set out by the owner according to his footsteps, assuming a lazy jaunt in socks,’ says Mary.
With the build complete, some 35 tonnes of rubble and impoverished soil were removed, leaving a single Sambucus nigra as the only remnant of the original garden. Creating a sylvan space with texture and movement, which felt lush and semi-overgrown was the brief for garden designer Non Morris.
The passage to the house, between two Victorian houses, sets the tone – transformed into a serpentine walk overhung with plants that arch and dangle, such as the evergreen Trachelospermum jasminoides and the semi-evergreen Solanum laxum ‘Coldham’, still spangled with mauve-tinged white starburst flowers in November. The path skirts the curved studio wall to the glazed front door of the house: here, the main garden is revealed, bounded to the west by a wall being taken over by the white-veined leaves of Chinese Virginia creeper.
Plants including Hakonechloa macra, sarcococca, Geranium macrorrhizum ‘White-Ness’ and Anemone x hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ spill over the edges of two main rectangular beds, which create layers of texture below the canopies of three multi-stem amelanchiers. Selected for their seasonal interest and narrow form, these were positioned to buffer sightlines between the house and studio. Each plant has been carefully considered for the site, which has a restrictive network of underground pipes and services – with shape, texture and eventual size all being important. ‘A London garden like this has to be disciplined,’ says Non. ‘Otherwise it would be overwhelming.’ So her chosen plants are either less vigorous varieties, such as Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Pee Wee’ and Parthenocissus henryana, or ones that can be kept a manageable size by pruning. An automatic irrigation system contributes to the profusion, especially from the giant foliage of Helleborus orientalis and Japanese anemones. Separate micro-sprinklers hydrate the vibrant cushions of Soleirolia soleirolii that soften the stepping-stone path.
Being a sheltered city garden, it has an extended flowering season. Nandina domestica, with bronzy new growth then sprays of white blooms in summer, hangs on to its vermilion berries until Christmas and Persicaria virginiana ‘Lance Corporal’ has delicate wands of red flowers into autumn. Evergreen elements, including ferns, sarcococca and bergenia, give winter structure, while rivers of pale blue Scilla mischtschenkoana and fragrant white Narcissus ‘Thalia’ snake through the borders early in the year. There is perfume, too, with inspired choices of Sarcococca ‘Winter Gem’ and Trachelospermum jasminoides ensuring many months of scent wafting across this delightful secret garden.
Non Morris Gardens: nonmorris.com
Eva Nemeth1/6Solanum laxum ‘Coldham’
Eva Nemeth2/6Soleirolia soleirolii creates a soft carpet around the stepping stones, edged with Geranium macrorrhizum ‘White-Ness’ and the exuberant fern Dryopteris atrata.
Eva Nemeth3/6Multi-stem Amelanchier lamarkii and a dusky Sambucus nigra add height and texture.
Eva Nemeth4/6Nandina domestica provides year-round interest, from bronzy new growth to clusters of tiny white flowers followed by scarlet berries.
Eva Nemeth5/6The flowers of Anemone x hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ light up a shady spot, while the glossy foliage of Sarcococca hookeriana ‘Winter Gem’ adds rich colour and its blooms are highly scented in early spring.
Eva Nemeth6/6Plants spill over the textured concrete stepping stones and a reclaimed brick path that link the new music studio with the house.
