The Courtyard Garden Design - What to consider

What is a Courtyard Garden?

There seemingly isn’t a simple definition of a courtyard garden. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a courtyard is ‘an area of flat ground that is partly or completely surrounded by the walls or a building’ suggesting it is sited in a pocket amongst a series of buildings, or a single building that features a courtyard to the center. This definition can also stretch to a smallish garden that comes off a building and is surrounded by high garden walls.

Essentially it is the walls that are key here.

What makes a Courtyard Garden different?

Without meaning to repeat the above - it is the walls that are key!

Walls: Stone and brick walls absorb and retain heat from the sun and release it back slowly. The temperature in some courtyard gardens can be several degrees higher that a garden next door that is open to the regular climate variables. This higher temperature lasts well into the evening after the sun has set as the wall releases the heat back into the atmosphere. Sitting against a warm wall in the evening is an experience not to be forgotten.

Light: Sun and shade are also stronger variables. If the garden is surrounded by high buildings then the sun may not make it to the floor and so the garden is cast in a deep shade. A courtyard garden that’s is bounded by a combination of garden walls and buildings will probably experience sunlight but the narrative used to describe this is usually ‘the sun enters the garden here at around 9 and has disappeared completely by 4 with the last of the sun over there’.

Shelter: Their sheltered nature also means they rarely experience frosts. The hard frost we got late this year that damaged many Acers and fruit trees didn’t even touch the courtyard gardens we have designed.

Rain: Rain shadows are also something to consider, the walls can create a barrier to rainfall and some borders may miss natural watering cycles. These may need more watering than the rest of the garden. Planting choice is more important here too, as they must be tolerant of dry conditions.

What is the consequence of this differing micro-climate in the Courtyard Garden?

Well, you may not see the sunsets, but you can still feel the heat and the increased ambient temperatures within. Also the plants you can grow can be less hardy. You can experiment more reliably with half-hardy and tender perennials and may have overwintering success with these, whereas your neighbours with the regular climatic variables may have many failures.

You may have to use more plants that tolerate part-shade even though you have a sunny courtyard – the sun can track through it quite fast and not be resting too long in any one place. You may have to use a shade plant palette. For on on how to assess what sun level your borders are, read the blog on this here.

If you have a courtyard garden and are unsure how to create the beautiful usable space that makes you want to fling the doors open, and will become the ever dreamed about extension to your home, then do call us.