In the elegant resort of Forte dei Marmi, Tuscany, an original garden with low water needs, foliage interest and bold sculpture. The front garden has a tropical feel, with plants like Phormium and Bird of Paradise plants, as well as an Arecastrum Romanzoffiana, the only palm immune to the red palm weevil which is devastating the Mediterranean coast. The side path is made with drought tolerant ground cover, Philla nodiflora, which doesn’t require mowing.

The back garden is dominated by a Magnolia Grandiflora, on a carpet of plants which thrive in the resulting dry shade. The dominant theme is shades of green, with white highlights given by the Carex Evereste, Geranium sanguineum album and the tiny scented Lily of the Valley. Other shade lovers include Ophiopogum japonicum and Liriope Muscari, and waves of Hakoneclea macra. Thanks to my amazing client I collaborated with the sculptor Nicolas Bertoux who, developing my thoughts on  Michelangelo’s “non-finito”, created two marble sculpture along the path, like sentinels, a contemporary reference to Japanese gardens. The planting around them is soft and textural to complement their surfaces, rough and polished in turns.