“The kitchen and living area give out onto the large wooden terrace at the rear and to the right of the house. To the side of the house, we have added a patio garden, with large concrete retaining walls concealing the terrace from the street. Over time, these will be completely covered with greenery. Incidentally, they also act as a buffer between the two gardens on different levels.”
The significant differences in levels, particularly in the front garden, made the garden design even more challenging as the front door is one and a half metres above street level. “To compensate for this, we used different products from Schellevis. We installed a large rectangular slab, which serves as a visual divider and bench between the public and private spaces. A staircase with extra-large concrete slabs leads to the front door. The design feels light despite the concrete because of the floating stair treads,” says Pot.
Garden contractor Maarten Vanvoorden of Zwemplus.be planted a wide variety of plants in close consultation with the architect and the residents. “Most clients tend to go for a low-maintenance garden, but in this instance, it was the exact opposite. These clients love plants requesting many different species. They were also closely involved in the design process from day one,” says Vanvoorden. “They settled on plants with large leaves and the odd colour accent here and there in a garden set in a wooded area, with giant oak trees on one side and a new bamboo forest on the other.”
