Country House Garden, West Sussex

Whilst looking for a country retreat in West Sussex, Paolo and Philip fell in love with this charming brick and timber farmhouse, dating back in some parts to Tudor times, and decided to buy the property on the spot. After renovating the interior, they turned their attention to the 2.5 acre plot surrounding the house and set about transforming this flat and open space into a garden. Paolo and Philip applied their expertise in interior design to the garden's design and created four separate green rooms, each devised with a strong sense of structure thanks to the planting of various topiaries and adorned with containers and sculptures. The garden is also instilled with hints of their countries of origin, Italy and Belgium. Thus, echoing the work of garden designer Jacques Wirtz, one of these rooms is hedged with waves of box balls of various sizes whilst the room at the front is filled with a formal parterre and planted with four clipped standard Portuguese laurels. Thanks to the evergreen palette used, the garden is still full of life in the middle of winter when the topiary planting is coated with a layer of frost, sharpening the garden's design.