Design visuals. Georgian Manor near Malpas, Cheshire.
Project status: Specification phase.
Jane Houghton Garden Design Studio
Some gardens need opening up. Others need gathering in.
The work begins by understanding the house, the land and how life needs to move between them. From there, structure, materials and planting are brought together to create a garden that feels entirely at home.
Jane’s planting expertise has been featured in Gardens Illustrated, including its print feature on the plants professional garden designers rely on for structure, seasonality and long-term garden value.
Selected projects
Gardens with their own way of belonging.
Chester
Cross House
Behind the new glass extension, the garden gathers itself into a small, intensely planted world.
Pulford · Cheshire
Belgrave Barn
A pale garden for an old barn, where planting loosens the edges and weathered materials help everything settle.
Malpas · In design
The Tinkwood
A Georgian manor landscape being stitched back together through terraces, orchard and longer views into the surrounding land.
The studio
The work begins with looking properly.
Jane Houghton brings together landscape design, horticultural knowledge and a close reading of place. Existing trees, awkward levels, borrowed views and the habits of daily life are treated as part of the design rather than inconveniences to be tidied away.
The studio remains deliberately small, allowing each project to be developed with care and followed closely from the first conversation through to planting and establishment.
Planting
Structure gives the garden its bones; planting allows it to breathe.
Planting is developed as part of the wider composition, not added once the spaces have been resolved. Trees, hedges and repeated forms establish rhythm and shelter; looser layers bring movement, season and atmosphere.
Selected recognition
RIBA North West Award 2023 · RIBA North West Client of the Year 2023 · APL Collaboration Award · Two RHS Gold Medals and Best in Category
“It is beautiful and beyond my wildest expectations. Every time I look out of the window, it is just amazing.”
Lesley · Cheshire
Begin a conversation
Every garden asks something different of its designer.
Tell us about the property, the landscape and what you would like the garden to make possible.