Located in a small village called Lower Upnor, this stylish low maintenance garden was created by our customer Simon Paul Gardens. They have used a stunning combination of Porcelain Paving and Decorative Aggregates to bring this garden to life.

As members of the RHS, Simon Paul Gardens take great pride in creating and maintaining beautiful outdoor spaces. Located on St Mary’s Island, they are an independent family business that provide landscaping, garden design and a wide range of garden care services.

Their client contacted them to completely re-design the garden now that their son has grown up.  They need a stylish space to entertain and enjoy relaxing, without creating too much maintenance.

The Design

The garden is designed to make the most of a backdrop of towering mature trees. The angles in the design aim to draw the eye towards the trees beyond, and give the seating area a sense of being nestled in amongst the planting.

Its purpose is also to seamlessly combine the old with the new.  The existing features, such as the sandstone path and patio, are brought together with the new elements. These include the wooden built-in seating and raised plant bed, as well as the porcelain patio, and our Flamingo Gravel and Ocean Blue Pebbles.

The Products

The Porcelain patio has a clean, fresh finish to it and is the ultimate low maintenance garden product. The new patio area stands on what used to be an old chicken run, and is a complete transformation! 

The rustic sleepers and timber work that surround the patio, help it to blend with the rest of the garden. Simon Paul Gardens worked closely with their client to select the decorative aggregates. Our attractive Flamingo Gravel was chosen as the grey, pink and peach tones complement the warm colours of the sandstone patio and the cooler colour of the porcelain.

Our Ocean Blue Pebbles in the 20mm size were selected as the client loved their gorgeous colour and smooth texture. The pebbles add contrast and definition to the design and are used in the raised beds to surround the plants.

The bright and colourful planting is an eclectic mix of plants. Each one was chosen to give interest and colour throughout the year. These specific plants were also selected as they require little maintenance throughout the year.

The water feature’s reflective surfaces enliven the scheme and our Ocean Blue Pebbles are used to decorate the bottom of it. This modern feature beautifully pairs with the rugged, timeless rocks it sits among. Furthermore, long swaying grasses have been planted around the water feature and are stunningly reflected back within it.

The Challenges

The project was started in the midst of a heatwave which meant Simon Paul Gardens were working on very dry hard soil. They were very grateful for the client’s generous supply of cool drinks to keep them going!

Luckily by the end of the project, almighty downpours had really helped to bring the garden to life. The rain also displayed the colours of our Flamingo Gravel and Ocean Blue Pebbles to the full. 

This stylish, low maintenance garden project took just 3 weeks to complete.

If you would like us to feature YOUR garden on our blog, please email laura@stonewarehouse.co.uk for details.