Wimbledon Flower and Vegetable Garden

A house refurbishment in Wimbledon, and the installation of an air source heat pump, was the spur for these clients to reorganise their garden. They wanted to plant more fruit and vegetables, incorporate a greenhouse, and still keep a lawn and flowerbeds. Removing self-sown trees and ivy at the back of the garden created more space and light. The shed was downsized and moved behind the air source heat pump, which has been hidden by a yew hedge. The lawn was sown with wildflower seed and will take a couple of years to develop, but everything else has established well.

A new greenhouse and raised beds now sit at the back of the garden, reached by a stepping stone path across the lawn, giving the clients the growing space they wanted without losing the garden's sense of openness. Around them, richly planted borders combine Helenium Moerheim Beauty, Echinacea purpurea Magnus, Salvia nemorosa Caradonna, Nepeta racemosa Walker’sLow and Geum Totally Tangerine with self-seeding erigeron and chamomile, giving a long season of colour and plenty for pollinators from midsummer into autumn. Nearer the house, an extended paved area holds a dining table and seating, softened by peonies and pots, so the garden works equally well for entertaining, growing food, and simply sitting outside.

The garden before the redesign: an uneven lawn, an oversized shed, and no defined growing space. Before photo of an overgrown lawn with a patio table, wheelie bins and a large timber shed at the back of the garden. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDes
The Concept Plan for the Wimbledon Flower and Vegetable Garden, showing the greenhouse, raised beds, wildflower lawn, borders and seating area in relation to the reorganised layout. The Concept Plan for the Wimbledon Flower and Vegetable Garden, sho
Garden view across a lawn with a stepping stone path leading to a greenhouse and raised beds, with orange helenium and blue echinops thistles in the foreground. A view back across the lawn towards the greenhouse and raised beds, with helenium and ec
Geum 'Totally Tangerine' flowering above a haze of purple salvia, against the timber fence. Orange geum flowers on tall stems rising above deep purple salvia spikes in a garden border. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDesign.co.uk
Mown grass path through a wildflower lawn of white oxeye daisies and purple nepeta, leading to a wooden greenhouse at the end of the garden. A mown stepping-stone path through the wildflower lawn, with oxeye daisies and nepeta either side leading do
Patio dining table with parasol and chairs against the house, with pink peony flowers in the foreground. The seating area by the house, with peonies in flower and the extended paving providing space for the dining table. Designed by JaneShanksterGar
Dark purple salvia spikes and pale pink tulbaghia flowers among nepeta, with orange geum and helenium blurred behind .Dark purple salvia spikes and pale pink tulbaghia flowers among nepeta, with orange geum and helenium blurred behind.
Chamomile daisies mingling with erigeron and verbena, adding a soft, informal note among the border planting. Close-up of white chamomile daisies with yellow centres, growing among purple verbena in a garden border. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDe
Echinacea 'Magnus' and Helenium Moerheim Beauty planted alongside nasturtium and chamomile in front of a raised bed. Pink echinacea coneflowers and orange helenium growing in front of a wooden raised bed, with nasturtium and chamomile at the base. D
The new greenhouse framed by helenium and echinacea, with tomatoes growing inside and a raised bed to the right. Wooden greenhouse with tomato plants inside, seen through a border of orange helenium, with a raised vegetable bed alongside. Designed b
Coco the cat enjoying the evening sun on the patio, among the planters. Tabby cat sitting on a paved patio in evening light, beside green planting. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDesign.co.uk
Sunlit helenium 'Waldtraut' with a bumblebee, greenhouse and raised beds visible in the background. Sunlit red and orange helenium flowers with a bumblebee, with a greenhouse and conifer visible behind. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDesign.co.uk
Close-up of Helenium 'Waldtraut' in shades of red and gold, with seed heads forming among the open flowers. Close-up of red and orange Helenium flowers with dark seed heads, on green stems. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDesign.co.uk
Blue-purple nepeta catmint growing beneath orange geum and dark purple salvia flower spikes. Nepeta 'Walker's Low' billowing beneath geum and salvia, a favourite combination for pollinators. Designed by JaneShanksterGardenDesign.co.uk
Erigeron karvinskianus self-seeding at the front of the border, with salvia and geum flowering behind against the fence. Small pink and white erigeron daisies at the edge of a border, with purple salvia and orange flowers behind against a timber fen
A wider view of the greenhouse and raised beds, reached by a gravel path, with verbena and helenium in the foreground. Wooden greenhouse and raised vegetable beds on gravel, with a border of orange helenium and pink verbena in front. Designed by Jan
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Large Garden Design on Wimbledon Common
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