Stylish contemporary family garden in Tooting Bec, designed by Ali Boyd and constructed by The Garden Builders, with beautiful mixed planting, generous open space and attractive relaxation areas. Typical of south London gardens, this family-friendly outdoors environment has dedicated functional areas for seating and entertainment and children’s play.

The contemporary scheme features a vibrant interplay of soft and hardscaping, simple, clean lines and geometric forms, focal trees and perimeter shrub planting. The garden is divided into three areas - a paved terrace by the house looks out to a huge lawn, which then leads to a striking pergola with fashionable, modern furniture.

Porcelain paving gives the terrace a sleek, elegant look that complements the wide glass doors of the property, seamlessly connecting the indoors and the outdoors. Porcelain tiles also provide strength and durability to the terrace, standing up to tough outdoor conditions. They are resistant to scratching and easy to clean and maintain as well. A matching fire table provides warmth and ambient lighting during colder weather. Contemporary outdoor sofas create a cozy, inviting family area for relaxation and entertainment.

The huge lawn is laid with artificial grass, doubling as a play area for children. Artificial grass provides a safe, low-maintenance play surface for children. A resin-bound gravel path with metal edging surrounds the lawn area.

The garden’s rear section features a handsome pergola by Renson Pergola, makers of high-quality outdoor pergolas. The sleek, white-painted structure beautifully blends into the surrounding planting scheme, creating an engaging focal point for the rear of the garden. The bright, orange cushions set against large, white scoop chairs accentuate the easy, contemporary look of the garden design and adds a pop of colour that draws the eye to the back of the garden. Pergolas are both a functional and aesthetic addition to the garden, creating shade and heightening the visual appeal of a specific garden space.

A small zen garden patch further highlights the beautiful planting scheme edging the garden, which includes a variety of shrub and architectural planting, such as Photinia pleached trees and the birch tree, Betula utilis jacquemontii. Also known as the Himalayan birch, this deciduous tree has a lovely white bark and delicate foliage.

The garden features a few surprising elements such as a shed painted black opposite the pergola in the rear left corner of the garden, which is cleverly hidden behind a Yew hedge.

A contemporary garden is suited to clients who want low-maintenance schemes and clean, uncluttered lines with plenty of open space. The Garden Builders work with many of London’s best garden designers to create stunning contemporary outdoor spaces that are as distinctive as they are functional and pleasurable. We work with both established and up-and-coming garden designers and landscape architects to translate their designs into beautiful, well-constructed gardens that are built within budget, on time and to the highest quality and excellent, meticulous finishing. Our team has a collective horticultural, design and construction experience of more than 55 years and has been behind some of the award-winning gardens in the Chelsea Flower Show and the APL and Bali awards.