Beyond the Picket Fence: The New Suburban Garden

A private paradise encompassed by privet and the picket fence, the suburban garden provides a vision of the hopes and dreams of millions of gardeners past and present, a recent format that the British have transported throughout the world, reflecting both identity and culture.

Today, gardens are being created everywhere in a desire to make our cities more liveable, connecting contemporary architecture and post-industrial development.

From courtyards and rooftops, to parks and small green spaces - even vertical gardens and forests abound.

We will explore the makers of these new urban gardens: designers, artists, architects and activists, the transformation of urban spaces into vibrant, green oases that provide a range of benefits to their communities, and the challenges – social, environmental, economic – to which they respond.

We will look back into history at developments and influences that were involved in creating this garden form.

Learning and teaching

The module will be delivered as ten 2 hour sessions. Sessions will consist of a 1-hour lecture, followed by class discussion and group work on specific topics relating to the module.

The discussion and group work will enable students to think critically and contribute to the debates and topics presented during the lectures.

Topics to include:

• The history of urban and suburban gardens.
• The spaces used for suburban gardens.
• The creators of suburban gardens.
• The challenges faced by designers and gardeners in urban environments.

Coursework and assessment

Essay: 100% - Exact nature of the task will vary from year to year. 2000 words. Due at the end of the course.

Reading suggestions

• Jimi Blake, A Beautiful Obsession: Jimi Blake's World of Plants at Hunting Brook Gardens (Filbert Press, 2019)
• Nigel Dunnett, James Hitchmough, The Dynamic Landscape: Design, Ecology and Management of Naturalistic Urban Planting, 2^nd edn (Routledge, 2025)
• Noel Kingsbury, Wild: The Naturalistic Garden (Phaidon Press, 2022)
• Stephen Parker, England's Gardens: A Modern History (Dorling Kindersley, 2023)
• Thomas Rainer, Planting in a Post-Wild World: Designing Plant Communities for Resilient Landscapes (Timber Press, 2015)

Library and computing facilities

As a student on this course you are entitled to join and use the University’s library and computing facilities. Find out more about using these facilities.

Accessibility

Our aim is access for all. We aim to provide a confidential advice and support service for any student with a long term medical condition, disability or specific learning difficulty. We are able to offer one-to-one advice about disability, pre-enrolment visits, liaison with tutors and co-ordinating lecturers, material in alternative formats, arrangements for accessible courses, assessment arrangements, loan equipment and dyslexia screening.