Formosa Landscapes win BALI National Landscape Award for Harvist Road

We're delighted and honoured to win a British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) National Landscape Award for our Harvist Road project.

We were commissioned by our client, to transform a fairly typical London rear garden, a narrow rectangle boxed in by brick party walls and the backs of neighbouring houses, into somewhere they'd actually want to spend time. The brief was simple to say and harder to do: make it feel like a proper extension of the house, somewhere for morning coffee and evening dinners alike, without it ever feeling cramped.

The existing space didn't offer much to work with, a straightforward lawn and patio, hemmed in on all sides, with no real sense of arrival or destination. So rather than fight the boundary lines, we decided to lean into curves. A sweeping herringbone brick edge now threads through the lawn and planting beds, softening every transition between hard landscaping and green space. Even the patio itself curves gently away from the house, so the whole garden reads as one continuous, unhurried gesture rather than a grid of separate zones.

The dining terrace is anchored by a fluted pedestal table, paired with a built-in curved bench finished in warm timber slats. This kind of seat works just as hard by day as it does once the wall-mounted lanterns come on at dusk. Just along from it, we built an outdoor kitchen around a Big Green Egg and a Gozney pizza oven, set into a bespoke Microcement-and-tile plinth with log storage tucked underneath. The tiling in warm greys and creams ties it straight back into the house's own material palette, so it never feels like a separate "add-on."

Planting does a lot of the emotional heavy lifting here. A Multi-stemmed phillyrea rises out of an oversized terracotta pot by the back door, star jasmine has been trained flat against the render walls in quiet geometric patterns, and at ground level ornamental grasse and drifts of daisy-like erigeron spill informally over the brick edging. We also kept an antique mirror window, mounted flush to the rendered wall as a piece of art rather than a functioning opening — a small, slightly unexpected detail that comes alive once the sconces are lit at night.

Our clients, had this to say...

"We recently had Formosa carry out a full transformation of both our front and back gardens, and we couldn’t be happier with the results.

From the outset, the team were professional, organised and easy to work with. They brought a real ability to interpret a brief, stay true to it and deliver with precision, and that came through at every stage.

The craftsmanship throughout is exceptional. The creasing tiles and seating area in particular show a real attention to detail, both holding true to the curved design direction. All the materials work together beautifully too, everything feels cohesive rather than a collection of separate decisions.

The project management was also excellent. The work was well planned and progressed steadily, with the team always knowing what came next. When problems arose, the whole team took ownership and got things sorted quickly and without fuss. That proactive attitude made a real difference.

We barely used our back garden before. Now it feels like a natural extension of our house, somewhere we’re out in all the time. Formosa turned a neglected space into somewhere that actually draws you outside, and that’s the best measure of the work.

Working with Neal and his team was a pleasure from start to finish. They take real pride in what they do, and it shows in the result. We’d recommend them without hesitation."

The National Landscape Awards are the largest of their kind in Europe, and open only to BALI members. No other awards scheme for designers, contractors and suppliers demands the level of professional excellence expected by the National Landscape Awards Judging Panel — so being recognised by them means a huge amount.

We're incredibly proud of Harvist Road, and it's a lovely reminder that a garden doesn't need acreage to be award-winning — just the right amount of care, craft, and a willingness to sweat the details most people will only ever feel, not consciously see.

If you fancy an informal chat about your own dream garden, please get in touch.