Expert advice

from My Renovation, Issue 99. November 2020

Style

design dream

With Cassandra Fenaughty

Cassandra Fenaughty is a landscape architect with more than 20 years’ experience. She’s the founder and owner of an innovative new renovation design consultancy, creating photo-real renovation concepts for clients looking to visualise their dream renovation before it begins. For more visit cassandrafenaughty.com. THE COMPLICATED COURTYARD Last week I went to visit a lovely new client to have a chat and provide her some advice on a tricky courtyard area at her residence.

Christine’s house was absolutely stunning, with a beautiful lap pool and furniture and finishes to match. Her courtyard, however, was her number one headache. There had been a hedge of bamboo planted to screen the neighbours years ago and it had established itself so well that it was very hard to remove. Christine has had the bamboo removed, however, it was impossible to pull out its fibrous base and root zones. What was left in the courtyard was a beautiful pandanus tree with a perimeter of damaged fencing, bamboo bases and lots of pot plants. It was overcrowded and looking very drab.

Fortunately, Christine and I had a great consultation and came up with two options for the area. Both options started off with the same base works. The fence needed to be repaired and repainted to match the house and any rotten deck areas or dying plants needed to be

Image: Shutterstock

“Fortunately, christine and i had a great consultation and came up with two options for the area”

removed. Next, all of the pots and water features needed to be cleared out so that the courtyard could start with a new clear base of a refreshed perimeter fence and the feature pandanus tree retained in the middle.

The first option was to build raised timber planter boxes along the walls on top of the bamboo bases. These planter boxes could be filled with new soil, and new tropical plants such as gingers or heliconias could be planted to soft en in the wall behind. I gave Christine permission to choose one of her existing water features to use in the courtyard and then to pocket plant a small selection of the pot plants that she had, in the ground under the pandanus tree. Then some beautiful course hoop pine mulch curls could be installed under the tree and around the plants to finish the job. This option provided a way to plant over the bamboo roots while simplifying the small space and making it seem larger and less cluttered.

The second option was one without building works, which would be more costeff ective. Building upon the coastal theme of the home and the feature pandanus tree, the second option featured using mounds of tumbled sandstone rocks in diff ering sizes along the edges and over the top of the root balls. A selection of Christine’s feature pots could then be placed in clustered groups along the fence line with feature planting to soft en the fence behind. The balance of the ground under the pandanus can be mulched with the same course hoop pine curls as in option one and sparse shade-tolerant interplanting could still be used under the pandanus tree. A water feature could still also be installed on a level pad of the sandstone spalls.

This little courtyard was a prime example of how one small part of a beautiful home can either make or break the property. It also shows that there is oft en more than one solution to a problem. We wish Christine the best of luck with her courtyard renovation and look forward to seeing the end result soon.

ask us Do you have a burning renovation or landscaping question? Let us know! You can email your questions for Cassandra to enquiries@ cassandrafenaughty. com.