Urban garden with a naturalistic planting – Amsterdam

Introduction

This garden is located in the Amsterdam area. Originally it was full of trees and conifers and had been severely neglected. To facilitate the sale of the property, all trees and conifers were cut; leaving a bare plot of land with a house on it. This was the starting point when creating the new garden.

Concept

The desire was to create an environmentally friendly garden consisting of several biotopes and lots of room for plants. A small vegetable garden had to be realized as well as a parking space for two cars. The garden is located at a corner. This meant that along the entire outer edge shielding from prying outside eyes had to be created. This had to be realized in a short timeframe as well.
Due to the emphasis of this garden on plants and ecology, organic shapes were chosen. Borders have flowing and round shapes.

Implementation

The front yard is banded with a blended hedge of field maple and hawthorn. This hedge of native species provides shelter to a variety of birds. The entire garden has been fitted with gravel walking paths. As a result, rain water can easily be absorbed by the soil.
The borders surrounding the parking lot get sun nearly all day. Therefore, species like lavender, purple coneflower, sedum and mexican feathergrass have been planted. Part of the front yard is located in the shadow and suffers from dry soil due to a nearby birch. A shadow border has been created in this spot consisting of ferns, ivy, Christmas rose and bellflower. In the dry part of the shadow patch, elven flower and cranesbill are growing. Underneath the birch, loose branches create a hiding place for small animals (e.g. hedge hogs) and insects.
At the side of the garden, a vegetable garden has been created. A small orchard provides the transition between the vegetable garden and the backyard.
In order to save space, the shielding of the side of the garden and the backyard id provided by a fence of concrete mesh that will be overgrown by various climbers like ivy, species of clematis, chocolate vine and honeysuckle. Ivy and honeysuckle in particular attract a lot of insects.
In the backyard a semi round border has been installed that contains various grasses, among other species purple love grass and leather leaf sedge. The grasses have been planted in between the perennials. Behind the house there is a small terrace that overlooks a shadow border. This border consists of a number of plants like dead nettle and bellflower that flower in spring.

Client: Private
Project type: Garden Design