Categories
All Posts Gardens by Peter Donegan Garden Design

Landscaping Dublin: Front of House

Pre 1980’s domestic gardening in Ireland had with hindsight quite a unique style, if I may even call it that.

Plants planted were sometimes in straight lined beds, but also individually within the lawn; hedges, though they do seem to be making somewhat of a comeback, were a thing of spirit levelling pride and the lawn at times a measure of how well you may be spoke about in society.

This I should add was all at a time just before the log roll epidemic and an almost decade of “dwarf” conifers and heathers taking over minute areas of Irelands gardens. In the music analogy department, think Cliff Richard and Englebert Humperdink and about as exciting as watching Peig Sayers frown at Mark Bolan and T-Rex. Of note, the last time I planted conifers and heathers collectively was 25 years, just before I started horticultural college. 

Categories
All Posts Gardens by Peter Donegan Garden Design

Landscaping: Front Garden Driveway. Knocklyon, Dublin

peter donegan gardens

note: this was garden was done last week as part of an overall back and front landscaping project. Due to my hands being covered in compost the last days I’m only getting around to posting it now.

As front of home garden driveways go, there are two immediate options that may come to mind when we think of a final landscaped or now in this case existing finish:

  1. like a teepee with a chandelier, it just doesn’t sit right and stands out for all of the wrong reasons. You gain extra double points here if it jumps out like a sore thumb when contrasted alongside its fellow home fronts.
  2. It’s final finish is that it fits in with its neighbours and maybe is a little of the usual lemon shirt and tie set at Christmas time, complete with pink jumper for Dad. A sort of sure that’ll do him, if you please.
  3. Or and finally, in the brand spanking new garden department, it should have a certain je ne sais quoi. And by default really it should also stand out ~ but for all of the right and very tasty reasons.

Fair enough, that’s 3 options, but you get where I’m coming from, right ? Right. Also tasty. That word in my head is double underlined. I’ll get back to that in a little bit.

Intro the before Peter got his hands on it pictures ?