A Deco is a sympathetic focal point in this Gloucestershire garden

A Deco greenhouse provides the perfect solution in a Gloucestershire garden set within an area of historic interest.

Adjacent to an Anglo Saxon burial mound in the Gloucestershire hills, a farm has stood since the 1600’s. Added to and modified during the industrial revolution of the Victorian era, it was in a sorry state of decline when our clients bought the property 8 years ago.

Held together

“with bailing twine and chewing gum”

the site was completely overgrown and in need of serious intervention before nature completely overwhelmed it. Sadly, removal of much of the orchard was necessary and a few apple and medlar trees are all that remain.

Whilst the more-important renovations took place on the house, the garden needed to wait it’s turn. Our owners did some essential clearing of invasive weeds and made do with a poly tunnel initially. With uninterrupted views across the rolling countryside and the cheerful babble of their geese, it’s an idyll they both look forward to spending much more time in as retirement approaches.

Like many others, the restrictions of lockdown presented an opportunity to spend time on projects that rarely get a look in usually. Our clients knuckled down to the serious business of searching for the right manufacturers of the greenhouse they envisaged.

They hadn’t anticipated just how diverse the greenhouse market is with the spread of quality versus price being significant. It took time to understand each company’s point of difference and there was a disappointing lack of response from some they approached. We remember the challenges of that period well. We experienced a five-fold upturn in enquiries, almost over night. For any business, this unexpected surge in interest was difficult to capitalise on, so it’s not surprising to hear this.

So, what were the key criteria for this couple?

The poly tunnel had proven to be successful in its’ function but lacking in its’ appearance.

“We were looking for a greenhouse that would become a feature of the garden. Sympathetic to the adjacent house and outbuildings and something we could be proud of”

It was important to have something with lasting quality and the benefits of an all-aluminium structure were unconvincing.

All our greenhouses, whether bespoke or one of our Signature models, and whether Victorian or Edwardian specification, are built to last. Our unique combination of Accoya® wood framework and aluminium roof ensure this and you can read more about the materials we use here.

Choosing the perfect location for your greenhouse can present more challenges than you may be imagining. Orientation in relation to the sun is a fairly obvious one, but proximity to helpfully-shading but often debris-creating trees can be more tricky to optimise, particularly in smaller gardens. The plant-pot to stock-pot dash time should not be overlooked either, unless you view that as sport! And so too the route back with tea or cocktail tray jangling.

This Deco is neatly sited in the western corner of this garden. With the ground higher here than around the house and patio, there was a risk that too imposing a structure would dominate the garden. But the dainty proportions of the Deco make it the ideal choice. Set on stone blockwork closely matching the original stone of a nearby barn, the greenhouse looks very much as if it’s always been here. And this highlights another element which requires careful consideration. For many of our customers, the low base wall is a key design element. A traditional approach which, with the right choice of materials, can help anchor the greenhouse in it’s setting, and has practical benefits too. It’s so easy to break glass to ground and there’s nowhere to hide where storage of the essential trappings of greenhouse gardening are concerned.

“the auto vents are a Godsend”

Once location, orientation and base specification are settled, turn your attention to the greenhouse itself. We use our Edwardian specification for the Deco, Arley and Croft Signature buildings. This means you’ll be getting a number of automatically operated roof vents as standard. How many will depend on the model you choose, but side ventilation (or side vents) are an optional upgrade. Depending again on the model and size of your greenhouse, it’s location, orientation, exposure to the prevailing elements, what you plan to grow inside, etc some, more or none could be the answer for you.

The Edwardian specification also comes with plastic rainwater goods as standard – black or white usually. Perfectly acceptable for many but if you want to minimise the visual impact of the guttering then you have the option to upgrade to a metal colour-matched system. An increasingly popular choice, and particularly on coloured greenhouses.

Here in Gloucestershire, our clients have decided additional side vents weren’t necessary but they preferred the metal guttering upgrade. White – classic and timeless – still makes up a significant chunk of the greenhouses we make. See our full range of colours here.

Finally, turn your attention to the interior. What will you grow? How will you divide the space between working, growing, seating? Our new Signature Price List makes it easier to understand the optional extras we offer and hopefully select the right ones for you. In this greenhouse, our clients have chosen staging configuration “E” – left hand side, right hand side and across the back. Plus an “A” shelf – on the left hand side. You can get more inspiration for how to organise your growing space in our Interiors Gallery.

Thus far, the focus has been on growing plants and flowers to populate the borders around the home. But with a new vegetable garden, complete with raised beds, they plan to turn their attention to vegetables. The geese are perfectly happy and the Deco is the envy of many of their friends.