Garden Designer Natalie Ashbee
August 25, 2015Ash & Bee Gardens was established in 2003 (formerly trading as Natalie Ashbee Gardens) and grew from the maintenance of small gardens to the landscape and planting design of high-end new properties in Cornwall.
I relocated to Clifton in Bristol in Spring 2014 with my photographer husband Mark and our three wonderful children, where I also freelance as a tv horticultural researcher ( BBC The Great Chelsea Garden Challenge; Chelsea Flower Show; Gardeners’ World ).
After a career as a primary school teacher I studied garden design, garden maintenance and garden history at Duchy College, Cornwall, with the design element taught by Chelsea Gold medal winner John Moreland. My garden design style is simple but effective, classy but practical and always individual. I strive to blend interior and exterior design to create a living space that works together as a whole to make your lives as calm or as invigorating as your needs require.
The relationship between client and designer is very important to me and I always spends time getting to know new clients, what they expect from the garden and looking at the style they have used in the house to help me decide on style in the garden. I am very practical in my garden designs, considering the aesthetic outcome alongside essentials such as where to put the washing line and the bins!
I offer a bespoke and personalised service for your home. I strongly believe in the ethos of ‘right plant right place’ – plants are happiest when growing in conditions closest to that of their natural habitat. With 11 years experience of gardening and designing in Cornwall I specialise in hardy plants and exposed locations but have also created cottage gardens, contemporary gardens, woodland and courtyard gardens.
I will work with your needs to design a garden that is practical, accessible and affordable. With initial sketches I will help source a good landscaper to create your garden and supervise the works if required. I will suggest suitable plants for the garden and am happy to source, buy and plant your new space.