A Low-Maintenance Garden Design by Tom Howard

February 19, 2016

Not only was there a lack of space and light, but the garden was overgrown, the paving tired and the clients had no interest in gardening. We look at how award-winning landscaper Tom Howard solved the problems with this low-maintenance garden design.

Warm Beige porcelain steps lead up to an artificial lawn and topiarised plants in this low-maintenance garden design by Tom Howard.

The client's brief

In their newly renovated house in Chelsea, the clients - a couple with children - had retained period features in the main rooms but opted for an ultra-modern basement. They wanted a bright, open garden where their young children could play, and which blended traditional and contemporary to match the house.

The garden was overgrown, with tired paving. Photo: Tom Howard Garden and Landscaping.

A classical design

Tom chose a design with a classical feel that would be low maintenance, with box balls, box hedging, ferns and box-head hornbeams. Symmetry was important to continue the classical feel. The problem was that although the left side was bounded by lovely London brick, the right side was marred by an ugly red brick wall. It had to go. To marry the two, Tom rendered both walls and painted them with Farrow and Ball 'Clunch', which is a soft grey with yellow undertones. This gave is a more mellow feeling than pure white.

The meranti wood screens, against which two tracheospermums are trained, at the far end of the garden will silver down to blend with the walls and Warm Beige porcelain paving. Photo: Tom Howard Garden and Landscaping.

Low-maintenance paving

The soft colouring also goes very well with his choice of paving - Warm Beige porcelain. Its consistent light colour and texture and the slabs' precise dimensions give it a modern edge, while the combined beige/sand tones introduce the required touch of tradition. Why did Tom choose porcelain paving? “The lower area is straight out from the kitchen-diner,” said Tom, “and the couple wanted a bright feel to match the interior. The need for low maintenance was a deciding factor too. The porcelain needs no sealing, doesn't stain too easily and, with its texture, it doesn't get slippery. The biggest worry was having little children with lots of steps.” This is the second time Tom has used porcelain. “The chap who lays it loves using it because it's so consistent and laying is easier.” Matching Larsen grout was sponged into the 5mm joints and, because this contains cement, Tom recommends cleaning the residue away quickly and frequently.

The bottom of the garden, showing the raised nature of the plane tree, before the new design.

Solving a problem

Finally, Tom created the artificial grass slope at the back as a cunning solution to the rise in level required to protect the roots of the plane tree, which has a TPO. Replacing the steps that were already there, would have unbalanced the design and spoilt the view from the basement windows. The alternative would have been to raise the height of the whole garden, not only making the steps from the kitchen-diner somewhat overwhelming, but possibly eliciting objections from the neighbours. “As it stands,” said Tom, “the steps are 1 metre 30 high, so you can see into the garden from the basement.”

Hellebores have been planted among the ferns to create low-maintenance planting with seasonal interest.

A rather neat solution all round, we think. For another striking design by Tom Howard, take a look at our round-up of outdoor wall cladding - another good choice when you want a garden with minimal maintenance. Porcelain paving, available in a large range of colours, textures and prices, is always a good choice when you want a low-maintenance garden. Post updated: August 2023