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Garden designer Fi Boyle won the People’s Choice category at the Society of Garden and Landscape Designers’ Awards for a garden created on a steep former quarry site. Her project offers practical lessons in surveying slopes, building terraces, planning access and choosing materials and plants for different conditions.
Garden designer Fi Boyle won the People’s Choice category at the Society of Garden and Landscape Designers’ Awards for transforming a steep, neglected former quarry garden into a series of usable terraces. The project, reported by Amateur Gardening, shows how surveying level changes, planning routes between terraces and repeating materials can help address common challenges in sloping gardens.
The site was very steep, with areas that were difficult to use and existing garden features described as overgrown and crumbling. Boyle said the clients, who are keen gardeners, wanted to make more of the space. The brief also called for machinery and wheelbarrows to move between levels without steps, so the garden could be maintained.
Boyle advises understanding the slope before deciding how to plant or build. She told Amateur Gardening that slopes above 30 degrees are very difficult to maintain, while soil and added compost can shift downhill. In her account, that can leave upper areas dry and lower areas wet, with the base also prone to frost pockets. She recommends a survey because the apparent change in level may not match the measured one.
For ground too steep to work as a border, Boyle used retaining walls and terraces. The quarry garden includes natural stone made from material found on site, rendered breeze-block walls, and a steel-and-sleeper wall. She also recommends considering lower retaining walls that adjust the slope enough to make it more manageable, while planning both steps and sloped access between levels.
Making Steep Gardens Work
The project matters to gardeners because steep ground can limit access, maintenance and planting, not just the amount of flat space available. The quarry garden’s design treats routes between levels as part of the practical brief: access for wheelbarrows and machinery was specified by the clients, rather than left as a later detail.
Boyle’s advice also points to decisions that depend on the site rather than a single design formula. A measured survey can inform where terraces are placed; the exposure of each level can shape planting and materials; and retaining structures can be chosen from more than one material. The garden’s award offers a concrete example, but the report does not establish that the same choices suit every slope, soil or budget.
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From Quarry Site to Terraces
The garden had previously been a private space, and earlier owners had attempted to create usable areas. Boyle described much of the site as virtually unusable, while accessible parts were in poor condition. The clients’ brief focused on recovering more of the garden while keeping it maintainable.
Boyle says the number and position of terraces were shaped by the site’s topography. The design also uses limestone paving across paths and paved areas, with stone walls built from material already on site. Rounded Cotswold gravel was selected to complement the stone; Boyle said it compacts, works as mulch and allows planting to spill across it.
Planting and path choices vary by location. Boyle used a Mediterranean palette on the sunniest terrace, with gravel and stepping stones. She said stepping stones need a firm surface surrounded by softer material such as gravel or planting; sleepers can be another option. In shaded areas, log paths or bark chippings can support a woodland character. The source report also describes blending more cultivated planting near the house with native or near-native varieties toward the garden’s outer edges.
“The clients are keen gardeners and wanted to make as much of the space as possible into usable garden.”
— Fi Boyle, garden designer, as quoted by Amateur Gardening
Limits of the Design Advice
The source report does not give the garden’s exact dimensions, slope measurements, construction costs or full planting list. It also does not specify the award year or the date on which the project was completed. Boyle’s comments about slopes above 30 degrees are presented as her professional guidance, not as a universal engineering standard.
The report describes design choices for this particular former quarry site. It does not establish how those choices would perform on other soils, in different climates or under different maintenance requirements. The suitability and safety of retaining walls, access routes and surface materials will depend on site conditions and construction.
Applying the Lessons at Home
The report offers no announced next phase for the quarry garden. For readers planning a sloping garden, Boyle’s sequence of advice starts with surveying the ground, then deciding where terraces and routes can fit before selecting materials and plants for each level. Those decisions should account for how people, wheelbarrows and equipment will move through the space.
Any specific project will require site-level assessment. The report does not provide construction specifications, so homeowners considering retaining walls or substantial changes to levels will need advice suited to their property. Boyle’s broader design point is to work with the slope’s conditions and use repeated materials and planting choices to connect distinct areas.
Key Questions
Who designed the award-winning former quarry garden?
Fi Boyle of Fi Boyle Garden Design designed the garden. She won the People’s Choice category at the Society of Garden and Landscape Designers’ Awards, according to Amateur Gardening.
What was the main challenge at the quarry garden?
The site was very steep, and parts were difficult to use. The brief also required machinery and wheelbarrows to move between levels without relying on steps.
What does Boyle recommend before designing a sloping garden?
She recommends getting a survey of the level changes. Her advice is that a slope can look less steep than it measures, and accurate levels help inform terrace placement and access.
How did the design connect the garden’s different terraces?
Boyle repeated materials across levels, including limestone paving and gravel chosen to complement the stone walls. She says repeated stone helped create a sense of connection between separate spaces.
Source: amateurgardening.com
