contemporary roof garden design

seclusion in the city

A stylish balcony garden design for a modern apartment designed by Norman Foster in the centre of Edinburgh. We created a space filled with vibrant colourful bespoke planters filled with a mix of architectural and soft planting which is transformed at night with a carefully designed dynamic lighting scheme.

Our clients had recently moved into a modern apartment in the centre of Edinburgh and were keen to turn their empty balcony into a colourful garden space where they could relax and entertain.

We began by creating clearly defined dining and lounge areas connected with a simple low water feature, each with a different style and atmosphere.

The dining area is framed with glossy, bespoke planters filled with formal planting including clipped Buxus cubes, a mass of lavender and lollipop Photinias underplanted with Libertias which provide privacy and seclusion.

They sit over exisiting lights sunk into the deck. We designed the planters to have coloured cut out sections to make a feature of the lights and add a splash of colour to the space.

The lounge area is enclosed with large, low curved planters with a rusted metal finish. Their size allows for a relatively large planting area for the space available.

In contrast to the formal, structured planting of the dining area the curved planters are filled with a more relaxed and softer planting in a gentle scheme of white, pink, purple and blue.

We commissioned Edinburgh artist Andrea Geile to make two bespoke metal lighting columns.

They feature her signature cut leaf designs and sit within the curved plants over two of the existing deck lights to cast a soft light in the evening.