Private residence, Coastal project – Kilifi, Kenya
The Place – A private house on the Kenyan Coast, Kilifi. The brief was to create a clear sense of entrance into the house and a series of calming courtyards created within the negative spaces of the house.
The Design – This simple courtyard at Salaam was designed within the sheltered walls of the house. Underneath the space is a large water trough and so we only have 200 mm of soil to work with.
We designed a simple water trough and planted banana trees which look wonderful against the white plastered facade of the house.The white madagascan periwinkle (catharanthus roseus) was planted and is allowed to self seed in the coral gravel.
Water is always a marvellous addition to a garden. The palm weavers, are nesting in the banana trees and centipedes creep up the side of the tough and drink. The trough has a simple selection of water plants for oxygenation and guppies to avoid the breeding of mosquitos.
