A holiday beach house garden design

"He had a clean palette to work with," says Felicity. "Just sand and open space with a few plants left there."

Proximity to the beach means that strong salty winds often blow across the property and this affected the types of plants that could be brought in. Felicity wanted some succulents in one area, open grass for family gatherings in another spot, and some fruit trees. 

She also wanted fences to surround the holiday beach house so her dogs could be restrained inside, and a line of screening trees between their property and the ones on either side. She and Damian agreed that the landscaping should be in tune with the surrounding environment as well as with the house itself.

"We wanted to combine the idea of looking natural as part of a coastal landscape with a no-fuss and low-maintenance garden," says Damian. "But with careful use of hard landscaping elements and planting we were aiming for informality with some structure, and contrasts in colour and texture." 

The rear of the property - on the landward side of the holiday home - slopes upwards and was tiered into different levels. This section was also fenced off to keep the dogs inside if necessary. The front area was designed to incorporate a large car parking and turning area along with open lawns, and fences were constructed from timber slats to complement the look and feel of the house.

Damian Colombo

Colombo Design/Colmain Services

How did the location of the holiday beach house affect the design process?

The fact it was on the foreshore directly behind the beach dunes meant we had to take into account the strong, salt-laden winds and a very sandy soil. And this is a holiday house, so we wanted the garden to be fairly low maintenance. Both these factors affected the sorts of plants we could use.

Did you put in many plants?

We probably brought in over 80 per cent of the plants. There were a few plants already there but we brought in several species. Some were quite advanced when they were planted, like fruit-bearing citrus trees.

Did the design of the holiday home influence the design of the landscape?

We had an inspirational house clad in spotted-gum timber, two storeys high. We wanted the landscape to fit in with the house as well as the environment. That meant complementary use of timber outdoors, and keeping the garden informal and native but architectural in form as well.

And what about the topography of the site itself?

The rear of the property rises up and was challenging to design. The front area is flatter, and needed to incorporate a driveway to accommodate several cars and a turning circle.

What were you trying to achieve with the hard landscaping elements?

We were trying to complement the lovely house and surrounding environment and continue the informal feel, but at the same time embrace a strong sense of structure.

Felicity

What ideas did you have for the landscape designing process?

The house had just been built and the site was a clean palette for Damian to work with. I wanted a certain feel for the space, and also certain plants, including succulents in one area, grass in another, and some fruit trees and herbs as well. I wanted it to be low maintenance too.

Were there any other special requirements that you asked for?

I have two large dogs which had to be kept safely inside the property, and I also wanted to be able to further restrict them from the front of the property when we had picnics there, or when cars were coming in and out. There's a substantial fenced space at the back where we can keep them.

How did you hope to screen the holiday home from the neighbours?

Damian planted some trees along one boundary, which I hope will be tall enough soon to fully screen us from the place next door. I don't want to look at the neighbours' undies on the line!

What did you want from the front outdoor areas?

We needed a large driveway to accommodate up to eight cars, because you can't park on the service road out the front. We also wanted there to be room for turning around there. We wanted open grassy areas too.

What did you learn from the process?

Overall I'm very happy with the completed project, but if I was going to do it again I would make sure we started the landscape designing process at the same time as the house designing began. We could have started planting then, to make sure the trees were larger when it was all finished.