A rose arbor leads into the center of the garden. Its smooth grass lawn makes for a truly distinctive look the owners love.A symmetrical play of hedges and plant beds with squared or rounded frames are interspersed with sweet flowers that relieve any harshness.This grey house in the “English Country” style stands out in the middle of a European-style garden. Open lawns, variegated flowerbeds and flowering plants are spaced at intervals.
Divided into small sections, the garden starts at the front of the house, with a neatly trimmed Hokkien tea hedge formally arranged for a welcoming effect. This spot has an intentionally playful feeling. Seasonal flowers are planted in open areas while the formal design is preserved with the Hokkien tea hedges framing the flowerbeds.
Next to the house is a cobblestone path; here landscaping is in “mixed border garden” style. Assorted plants with detailed leaves and bright flowers grow together for a natural look, rather than clearly separated into plots. From here two more spots are visible; a circular grass lawn surrounded by rose beds, and a courtyard set up like a chessboard.
Behind the house is a beautiful and varied rose garden, once more hedged in by Hokkien tea plants. In spite of the single level garden design, there is a background of tall trees to dispel any sense that dimension might be lacking.
Hokkien tea hedges are laid out in elegant symmetrical lines, giving just the right feeling of formality to this expansive garden.Big “chessboard” in the garden: Concrete squares alternate with savanna grass. Cement chess pieces add narrative.Mountains and tall trees fill out the landscape, making the garden appear like a natural continuation of local topography.
Stepping into the house you still feel the owners’ dedication to the natural world. Glass doors all around open on the beautiful garden outside.
Each bedroom on the second floor has a private balcony for coming out to sit, feel the breeze, and enjoy the garden. A simple look around shows that the European garden, plants, and nature itself are things this family takes delight in, and provide a true retreat from the workaday world.
The parlor has lots of openings for outside light. One wall is of brown brick with orange accents, rising all the way to the ceiling to add visual warmth.The dining area connects to the parlor, which has a lower ceiling.The bedroom has a warm feeling even with its cream-colored drapes, bedstead, quilt, and wooden floor.Inside the arbor is a glass table, attractive and comfortable to use.
Behind the short white fence here, perched on a small hill, is a vacation cottage with a colorful garden all in the English country style.
/// Thailand ///
Story : Panchat Changchan /// English Version : Peter Montalbano/// Photos : Chaiyapruk Podang /// Landscape : Suanleela Raiyanongplerm
Vacation cottage on a hill, relaxing waterside gazebo, plants with spiky leaves: iris, feverroot, screwpine and willow
“This kind of retreat suggests maybe we shouldn’t go back to living in the harsh square frames of the urban life. Gentle, fresh, spontaneous, the garden captures the essence of the countryside,” remarks the garden designer, Sak Rueangphrom.
The owner, Kiatchai Phonpharote adds, “The house all by itself on this secluded property felt a little somber, which is why I wanted to put in a country-style English garden, with its easy, relaxed lines.”
Vintage-style mailbox attached to a railroad tie, hung with an old-style bell. Neons line the entryway to the houseThe English-style country well represents a connection between water and garden flower bedsA red bench stands in bright contrast to greenery and flowering plants like trumpetflower, neon hibiscus, and Mexican grass
From the house a garden path of fine river gravel descends step wise to a waterside gazebo where Himalayan juniper, silver pine, Chinese thuja, and oriental juniper among clumps of Mexican fountain grass are planted in contrasting height, creating dimension and giving this spot an unique character.
“We had to make some serious adaptations,” said the designer. “The ground here is red clay, not much good for planting. We brought in topsoil, dug a pond, and built up the hill, finally spreading local cow dung fertilizer over it all before planting.”
As in Europe, Norfolk pine is planted where it will shade the house and add to a mountain forest atmosphere
Off the path, I walked along the grass lawn covering the hill, which gave a good view of various spots in the garden. The area isn’t all that big, but there are elegant touches: the bright red and sky blue of the benches contrast with green vegetation and flowers effervescent in morning sun, and there’s an entertaining narrative with animal sculptures set here and there in a natural-looking way. There are few large trees, leaving the garden open and relaxing to the eye.
Behind the house is a vegetable and herb garden with papaya, water morning glory, lemon grass, kaffir lime and basil
Little joy with a cool lush green small garden in front of a pretty white house protected in front by a hedge of English banyan. Sukanda and Chaiyanon Mimarayat were inspired to create this beautiful place by the book cover of Small Garden from Baanlaesuan Publishing.
/// Thailand ///
Story : Warapsorn Akkhaneeyut /// Photos : Sitthisak Namkham /// Landscape : Little Tree
Seeking out the garden designer, Siriwit Riubamrung of Little Tree, they had to wait two and a half years to enlist his help. “When we first went to Little Tree the Designer needed to see the actual site, but the big floods came and we couldn’t continue for another year. Then prices were higher, so we had to wait even longer.”
In the meantime Sukanda redecorated, the space adding on a small cottage in a mixed French country and vintage style and a relaxation room with a porch, walkway, and lawn, all while waiting for the garden to arrive.
English banyan line two sides of the walkway entering the houseInside the little gate is a comfortable space to sit, but the tall hedge keeps it private.
“Our old place was a townhouse with retro façade, not like this at all. Then we started getting out more, and thought about copying the look of restaurants and coffee shops we liked, such as Agalico, which Little Tree designed. We gave Siriwit a free hand because we liked his concepts, but of course he discussed everything with us in advance. He made adaptations from the original work plan such as increasing the height of the hedge barrier in front for more privacy.”
A checkerboard tile pattern fronts the house, and cobblestones set diagonally on the washed sand walkway
Inside the garden is a very private enclosed space, with a chic black lawn table on top of cobblestones set in diagonal lines, fragrant yellow gardenias, and bright flowers scattered here and there for a relaxing, casual mood.
These gorgeous rectangular English banyan hedges took 2 years to reach their 2-meter heightNear the pond, detail-textured cape plumbago encroaches on the walkway, with knot root foxtail adding a striking look.
Siriwit helps with color coordination as well as prices and brands. In the mix of plants he inserted Fukien tea and English banyan hedges trimmed into geometric shapes to relieve harshness so the garden looks orderly, but not too formal. He adds, “I played with shapes and forms, the diamond-shaped walkway and yard with checkerboard lines of tile in the front. The central court is trapezoidal, so I took away the unevenness with two lines of banyan plants.
Hedge plants mixed in with free-form: semi-formal, easy maintenance; trim hedges every 2-3 weeks, or once a month if strapped for time.
“We used medium-sized plants with beautiful forms placed symmetrically. Golden gardenias. Leafy plants with different shades: neons, silvers, spotted coralberry, evergreen spindle, lime. Put in a pond with a cute rabbit-head fountain.”
View from the lawn table into the house takes in a precise organization of plants and decorative components
A beautiful verdant garden with a vintage feel. A place to walk in and relax with a cup of your favorite coffee. Peaceful, relaxing.Once you’re here, where else would you want to go?
By the owners’ design, attractive flowerpots adorn a shoe-placement shelf.Between the house and relaxation room the indirect light calls for shade-tolerant plants like the dwarf neon hydrangea along the path.Pink-flowered hydrangea contrasts with vines of spotted jasmine climbing the house.
As we stand in front of this secret garden, the fragrance of jasmine trees reach out. The gate opens, revealing dazzling white flower clusters, petals spread across the driveway. Surrounding the house is a tall banyan hedge. Is a secret garden hidden inside? Owners, Aphiwat Wiriyawetchakhun and Phanison Anansuchatikun assigned Suphakit Milap of Sukyen Garden to design a garden to suit their beautiful house, and this is the result.
Creating a string of small circles of plants of differing heights for a remarkable effect.Though a lot of hardscape is used, the choice of plants and their placement make the garden look quite natural.
At first, I thought of doing Chinese style, flowerpots and planters because we like the Chino-Portuguese look, but we’d bought a lot of Western garden ornamentation from the GEO store before we were married. Suphakit saw it and said we should use this.” Plants were found to match, and the garden took on a vintage atmosphere resulting in a pleasant English garden flavor: a two-tier bird bath, concrete benches, and so on. The garden follows the L-shaped form of the house and is organized into two parts.
Placing the pond by the tall windows creates a great garden view for people looking out.
“From this room both sections are visible. The owners wanted a kind of “secret garden” with a lot of privacy, hence the banyan hedge. They also wanted an orderly looking garden, not busy, so I used a formal design. In front and back, you’ll see a lot of connecting rectangles, with focus points in the center, using conservative colors and materials such as cobblestone, natural rock, and washed gravel divide areas of use.
Cute figurines from the owner’s collection welcome the visitor coming up to the house. /// Medium-sized carp pond adds a pleasant feeling.Little courtyard tucked away with plants grown behind a little stone wall just high enough to sit on, for an English flavor.Leaves of red mixed with shades of green give dimension to the garden.
“Phanison is here on weekends, and Aphiwat is here every evening. So I used fragrant evening plants like night-blooming jasmine, golden gardenia, satinwood, and a heady mix of flowering plants to give a ‘cottage garden’ feeling, softening the hardscape with plants like Malabar chestnut, wild petunia, oleander, and leafy plants with contrasting colors like Chinese witch hazel and willow-leaf acacia.”
The garden with its many fresh shades of green is enclosed by banyans, very private.Stone planters create borders for an orderly beauty that remains natural.
Each section has a circular focus point. The area by the street is a more simple yard and includes growing kitchen vegetables for home use. The back garden is much more elaborate, with a little waterfall, seating, and an elaborate hardscape.
This spot is accessible from the living room; placed the table here for easy use.
Maintenance is fairly simple, with an automatic watering system. The owner’s mother also comes to help. “This garden has made the house so much more pleasant and comfortable – who would have thought? It feels like the fulfillment of a heart’s desire,” Phanison tosses off at the end.
Concrete bench in among the plants for a pleasant hideaway.
Happiness can be a cool breeze in the morning and a cup of coffee with pastries while listening to the sound of flowing water to a counterpoint of a birdsong. This is the experience offered at Kays Espresso Bar, a new cafe in Chanthaburi Province with a scent of coffee in the garden.
A decorative waterfall gives life and motion to the garden. On the stone wall above is the shop name.Ecology of nature: flamingo figures in fountain grass, fishing at pond’s edge.One of the garden highlights at Kays Espresso Bar, perfect choice and placement of plants and ornamentation.
Kwinwan Sangwan, a shop owner tells how it got started: “This was a dream of my Dad. We wanted the shop to be so pretty outdoors and in that customers would stop by to take pictures.”
“For the landscaping, we contracted Sak Rueangphrom. From the start, we wanted an English-style garden with a hint of tropical and a lot of places for people to sit and maybe drink coffee or tea.”
Freeform red flagstones trace a path from front to back. The river gravel is easier to maintain than grass. Vegetation of varying height lines the path past a birdhouse and an urn-shaped planter.
Sak took the challenge and delivered as ordered, even if there were a few problems to deal with.
“The first time I saw the worksite it looked like a desert, but somehow we managed to turn that around. The first problem was the clay topsoil, sticky and tightly compacted. We broke shovels digging, had to switch pickaxes. The good thing was that the ground didn’t absorb too much water, and wasn’t about to collapse.
English-style bird bath planted with asparagus fern, spikemoss hanging below. A ground cover of varicolored leaves and flowers makes this a striking spot.
“Then the weather. In Chanthaburi it rains a lot, so we adapted, using water-tolerant varieties such as flame nettle, ferns, crepe ginger, etc. Once it rained seven days and nights, but the trees recovered quickly and by now their roots have extended and can handle any amount of rain.”
Railroad ties laid down decoratively with ground cover plants growing over them.
The hardscape includes the large metal fountain in a modern style to match the building, with a pond and waterfall. Further on is a metal frame gazebo, and then a big rust-colored faucet set in an upright hollow log. A flagstone path of red sandstone runs throughout the garden.
Beautifully designed lion’s head above a faucet. If you wash hands here the water falls on a clean stone surface, no mess.
Old benches are set in the back, by a gray wall covered in climbing vines, with bright ground cover colors and a bird bath planter filled with beautiful flowers. English-style chairs are found in various shady spots.
English-style lawn chairs for enjoying tea and coffee outside.Arbor and back entrance gate, with a cobblestone walkway.
Sak adds, “we had to adapt the original model to include big shade trees such as giant crape-myrtle, freshwater mangrove, canna, etc., relying on hardscape and ornaments to create the sense of an English garden: urn-shaped planters, bird baths, fences, arbors. It came out just as we wanted: shady, pleasant, not overdone. Bees, butterflies, birds, crickets, and cicadas live and sing here, a relaxing sound.”
Urn-shaped planters at the entrance show off the English garden style.The owner especially loves this arbor, with its curved benches set on round cobblestones.
Here is a shop owner who loves sharing nature with his customers, and with the animals who make their home in the garden. For a taste of this happiness, stop in sometimes at Kays Espresso Bar, on Yanwirote Road right in Chanthaburi. We guarantee you’ll get hooked.
Arbor frame over a decorative brick column, with a hanging planter and cute bird sculptures.Cats claw vine climbs the decorative wall, reducing the harshness of the stone and bringing the garden closer to nature.A cute use for old watering cans: turn them into planters.
Small joys may begin with an infatuation. This Little English garden is composed of many irresistible figurines, urn planters, and colorful plants selected by the homeowner.
Flagstone path with river stone filler crosses the garden to a bench, framed by bushes and different ground cover plants. Tiny figurines and a sculpture of a woman, an urn planter: all from the owner’s beloved collection.
“I’ve lived here about six years. Before, it was full of large trees. I gradually added tropical plants until it seemed too much. We only have about 220 square meters, and the trees limited us to plants needing shade or indirect sun, so loving colorful flowers that need direct sunlight, I decided to reinvent the garden with my favorite plants and décor.
The owner takes such good care of her plants that they produce a profusion of flowers brightening the garden everywhere.“I group plants that grow well together and give them as much sun and regular watering as each variety needs.”
“I took a time to think about the design, a little worried that when we took out shade trees in front of the house we’d get too much heat inside. But the house faces south, only gets full sun 4 months out of the year, and there’s usually a cool wind blowing.”
A tall wall English banyan gives privacy, concealing the fence behind the bench.
Yasamanot designed the garden with an open look, black plum and freshwater mangrove planted about with shrubs and ground cover. Taking out the grass lawn, she paved the walkway with slate and light-colored river stones, with tall English banyans along the fence for privacy. To the right are medium-sized and beautifully flowering plants such as arrow-leaf plumeria, hibiscus, blue crossandra, white mussaenda and so on. A concrete walkway leads to a decorative fountain that brings refreshing moisture to the garden. Behind the house, She has given great attention to the placement of her most beloved plants and décor to produce the distinct feeling of an English garden.
Before paving the path, the owner suggests first packing a layer of sand tight to make it even, then laying down a plastic mesh with gravel on top. A decorative fountain adds to the refreshing mood.
For hardscape elements like sculptures and urn planters, I bought it from Art Garden& Décor at the Saeng Ari Garden plant flea market, Nakhon Phan in the Bang Yai neighborhood, and much more. For plants, I go to Kanchanapisek Road, Bang Yai, Sanaam Luang 2, and the Baanlaesuan fair.
Changing the garden from a play of colorful flowers to a peaceful mood, we enter a quiet spot through a green wrought iron arbor.
“I group plants that grow well together and give them as much sun and regular watering as each variety needs, paying attention to problems and changing conditions. Sometimes we have snails and leaf-eating aphids; we cut aphid-infested leaves away so the insects don’t easily spread. The garden’s in good shape now. The flowers are in dazzling full bloom, and that makes me feel happy and refreshed.
For a good, safe fit, plant Norfolk pine by the house: it grows up, not outwards, so won’t cause problems. Roses climb the walls by cement figurines, in the English style. Verdolaga and Cape plumbago fluff out and spill over onto the path.Plant group of blue rock bindweed, oleander, and dwarf eucalyptus, bright green subtly dotted with color.
“In the morning you can see lots of butterflies and small birds, and smell the fragrant flowers. In the evening I come straight home and spend so much time enjoying the garden I often forget what time it is.”
In front of the door is Cape plumbago, with bright indigo flowers, mixed with a sweet pink of water primrose, with a small cement urn planter.
Red ivy extends out, climbing onto the slate flagstones. /// A cute duck sculpture hidden in among wild petunias.
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