Overview

Throughout 2022 we supplied Archway Green with a range of plants, for the soft landscaping of Avisford Grange, a new-build housing development by Linden Homes. Avisford Grange is situated in Walberton, with the South Downs and Walberton Green right on its doorstep. With great transport links, Avisford Grange is six miles from Arundel and eight miles from Chichester. 

The development offers a countryside location with superb one and two bedroom apartments, and two, three and four bedroom homes—as well as leisure facilities and on-site tennis courts. 

Client: Archway Green

Project: Avisford Grange

Location: Walberton, West Sussex

Our Approach

We supplied an extensive plant selection to complement the new-build development, including Hebe rakaiensis (shrubby veronica) and Hebe ‘Midsummer Beauty’ (shrubby veronica ‘Midsummer Beauty’), which were both planted within homeowners’ front gardens and add low maintenance, year-round curb appeal to the properties. Hebe rakaiensis is a compact, evergreen shrub with small, vibrant, glossy green foliage. Growing up to 90cm in height, it has a rounded form and blooms dense racemes of elegant, white flowers in summer. Hebe ‘Midsummer Beauty’ is a taller Hebe variety—growing up to 2m in height—with a rounded habit and long narrow foliage, which starts out with a subtle purple hue. Hebe ‘Midsummer Beauty’ brings colour to the residents’ borders with its long-lasting purple and white flowers throughout summer and autumn. 

A mixture of impressive, evergreen and deciduous shrubs of various heights were planted to create striking borders across the new-build development. Lonicera nitida ‘Lemon Beauty’ (shrubby honeysuckle ‘Lemon Beauty’) was planted to provide groundcover and year-round colour. The evergreen shrub has small, glossy, green leaves with lemon-yellow margins on arching branches. It blooms white, tubular flowers in late spring, followed by purple berries throughout summer and autumn for a pop of colour. It’s a tough and reliable plant and grows quickly to provide excellent groundcover within borders. To provide a height and colour contrast, Prunus × cisterna (purple-leaf sand cherry) was included in the plan with its upright form and red-purple foliage, which deepens in the summer and transforms to a warm bronze in the autumn months. In spring, Prunus × cisterna blooms attractive, delicate, pink and white flowers. Prunus × cisterna is a lovely, low maintenance planting option that provides multiple seasons of interest. 

Many trees were planted throughout Avisford Grange, including Acer campestre (field maple), Acer platanoides (Norway maple) and Quercus robur (English oak). Acer campestre is a medium height, deciduous tree with a compact habit. Its dark green, shiny foliage has five lobes and rounded teeth, which turn golden yellow or red in autumn before they fall. Acer campestre has clusters of cup-shaped, yellow-green flowers in summer and autumn, which are an excellent nectar source for pollinators. When pollinated, these develop into brown, winged fruit—known as samaras. Acer platanoides is a large, handsome, deciduous tree that grows taller than 12m in height, with green, five-lobed foliage which turns yellow, orange or brown in autumn. It has clusters of green-yellow, scented flowers which later transform into samaras, and then fall in autumn. Quercus robur is a magnificent, native tree that grows taller than 12m in height with a showstopping, broad crown. In spring, Quercus robur blooms long, yellow-green catkins, followed by its bunches of green foliage, which have shallow, rounded lobes; these later turn a red-brown shade in autumn. A striking and distinctive feature of Quercus robur is its acorns on long stalks, which start out green when young and ripen to brown—eventually falling to the ground in the autumn months. 

The Result

The plant selection for Avisford Grange has been thoughtfully planned out to suit the location and provides an abundance of benefits to the new homeowners, as well as local wildlife. For instance, Quercus robur provides plenty of support for wildlife—more than any other tree variety within the UK. Around 2,300 wildlife species rely on English oak for food and shelter. Acer platanoides is also excellent for wildlife, as its leaves are a firm favourite with caterpillars, and local birds and small mammals use its seeds as a food source. 

The plants will also provide excellent year-round colour. The foliage on many trees will transition from green to yellow, orange or brown in autumn and provide fantastic architectural interest during the winter months, once their leaves have fallen. In addition, the mixture of deciduous and evergreen shrubs bring various colours to borders around the development and flower throughout various points in the year. 

Archway Green is thrilled with the end result, which combined our excellent client service and high plant quality, with Archway Green’s strong expertise in soft landscaping for new developments. We hope the residents of Avisford Grange enjoy their new homes for many years to come.