The desire to make your private garden as natural, hypoallergenic, comfortable and stand out from the general background as possible is what is at the peak of consumer demands today. Hence the special architectural and landscape approaches
According to CIAN statistics*, in the first half of 2024, 226.2 thousand residential mortgage loans were issued in the Russian Federation as a whole for the purchase and creation of residential housing facilities (83.9 thousand in the first quarter and 142.3 thousand in the second). This is about 30% of the total number of mortgages issued during this period. “The leaders in the number of issued housing and communal services loans were both quite expected regions with the most developed suburban market and large volumes of private housing (Moscow Region, Bashkortostan, Krasnodar Territory, Tatarstan, Rostov Region, Chelyabinsk Region, Sverdlovsk region), and unexpected ones – Moscow and St. Petersburg, where the private sector is small”, — experts tell.
The Moscow region took the first place in the number of issued loans for residential housing (14.5 thousand in six months), despite the fact that rural mortgages do not operate in the region and all loan agreements were concluded under other programs with less comfortable conditions. However, the gap between the first place and all the others is small: in Bashkortostan, Krasnodar Territory, Moscow and Tatarstan, more than 10 thousand loans were also issued.
But the statistics published at the end of July by the analytical center of the Incom-Real Estate company*, which states that currently 7.3 thousand cottages and plots with a contract in 215 projects are for sale in the Moscow region. A year ago, the offer of this format totaled 4.6 thousand lots in 171 projects, that is, during the period under review, the increase was 59% and 26%, respectively. The average cost of a primary cottage decreased by 6% year—on-year to 24.3 million rubles, but the number of transactions increased by 44%. The supply deficit persists, and today the potential demand is 20% higher than realized.
All these data once again confirm that there are more and more owners of houses with plots in our country. It is reasonable to assume that many will decide or have already decided to lay out gardens on these sites. But which gardens are in fashion today? How else do the owners use this territory, except for its direct horticultural purpose? Which areas and small garden objects are in the greatest demand now and how are architects, landscape designers and management companies of cottage settlements ready to help here? That’s what we’re going to talk about today.
As told BFM.ru The art director of the L-Buro landscape studio, Peter Lari, their company’s clients are residents of large cities. And now their orders are divided into two main types.
Peter Lari, art director of the landscape studio L-Buro, “The first to build a family estate: these are quite large households with a plot of 40 acres or more. The garden is a place for them to gather their family and receive guests. This is both a subject of a certain status, and, of course, a place to restore one’s own strength. The maintenance staff often lives there as well. This type of client has a great desire to be outdoors and at the same time have a high level of comfort. Among their requests (and this is a new trend) is the maximum preservation or recreation of natural nature, you can also note requests for a children’s play area (not just a playground!), secluded places for reading and meditation, a hearth for family gatherings, a swimming pool with an outdoor terrace, a stylish water feature. We often do paving heating, outdoor acoustic systems, fog generation in such gardens, and automate all functions in the garden as much as possible. Among the new garden elements in our projects is a patio, that is, a pavilion with a panoramic view of the garden and all the amenities for recreation and remote work. The second type of clients are people who have bought a small plot of 8-15 acres (often in a cottage village). It is important for them to live within an hour’s distance from the city, besides, people often live in such houses on a permanent basis, therefore, like in an apartment, they appreciate convenience and versatility. Classics among their requests are a terrace, a comfortable playground, a barbecue area, a place to sunbathe and one or two fruit trees. Such a set of objects can be designed with jewelry and on a small plot, choosing a combination of neat architectural techniques combined with modern landscape approaches.”
Based on his own experience, Vasily Bushkarev, Director of the Operation Department of Gals-Development Group, General Director of the Corvette management Company, emphasizes: The owners really appreciate the symbiosis of architecture and nature, trying to maintain and continue it on their plots. Therefore, for example, hedges and arrays of low shrubs, ornamental grasses and groundcover perennials are increasingly taking the place of fences.
A hedge. Photo: Svet/Lori Photo Bank
“Today, the request for the privacy of the site remains, but it is important for customers that the external fence of their territory does not look like a hard border or a fortress wall from the inside. The design can be made in the form of multi-layered curtains made of hedges or using geoplastics and dense multi-level landscaping. The site is a clearing, and the edge of the forest acts as a border,” confirms Marina Yarmarkina, architect and co—founder of the Utro architectural bureau.
Vasily Bushkarev, Director of the Operation Department of Gals-Development Group, General Director of the Corvette management company, “Zoning of sites is usually aimed at maximum convenience for recreation and family leisure. The owners divide the territory into functional areas: a recreation area with hammocks, swings and sun loungers, a barbecue area, a playground and a garden area. One of the owners of the village “Berezki River Village” organized a very beautiful playground with a greenhouse where her mother grows vegetables — tomatoes, cucumbers. But this is rather an exception. Basically, the owners prefer to plant coniferous plants and ornamental shrubs on the plots with accents in the form of flowering perennials and seasonal flowers. The rest of the space is left in the form of a lawn to preserve the feeling of spaciousness. Many owners have their own swimming pools on the plots, which are also fenced with hedges, creating privacy and shade in the summer. The architecture of some houses allows you to make a summer terrace on the roof of the house, and this is also used by our clients. Corvette Management Company actively helps them in this by providing services for complex landscaping of sites — whether it is landscaping, lighting, construction of covered terraces or roof terraces, if the structural design of the building allows it.”
As the expert notes, one of the important current trends is the use of hypoallergenic plants for landscaping. “During the construction of the Maslovo Forest Club, we tried to carefully preserve birch trees in the adjacent plots. But, as it turned out, many owners then get rid of them due to increased allergenicity and replace them with coniferous large—sized ones,” Vasily Bushkarev shares his observations.
As for the functional zoning of private gardens, according to Marina Yarmarkina, in general, the same principles apply here as when designing a house. The site should have both public areas where hosts and guests meet for lunch or for active pastime, as well as more private spaces where you can be alone with yourself.
Marina Yarmarkina, architect and co-founder of the Utro architectural bureau, “When designing zones, it is important to maintain a balance between public and green private spaces. To do this, in addition to the mandatory functional areas such as a canopy with a table, lighting, wind protection and all necessary infrastructure, lawns are created without a specific function, but with beautiful view openings. If necessary, you can put a table or a sunbed there. Proximity to the city is also important. If the number of activity zones for a cottage located nearby may be small, then for a more distant site it is necessary to provide various attractions that will be of interest to guests throughout the weekend: a beach volleyball court, running and trekking routes, saps or even equestrian sports.”
The private country garden has all the possibilities to use the natural elements of the water-green infrastructure to divert surface runoff from the territory, the expert continues. “That’s why we are implementing nature—like solutions – no storm drains and wells. There should be a minimum number of sealed surfaces made of tiles or paving stones, for example, for entrances to a building, and all other paving is carried out in bulk drainage coatings. Water from the roads is diverted into biodrenage grooves or closed drainage channels leading to a rain garden with moisture—loving ornamental plants,” Marina Yarmarkina shares her secrets.
Talking about the trends currently prevailing in garden art, Estima designer Diana Levina agrees with her colleagues: this year, the desire to make your small area of nature healthier, more environmentally friendly and stand out is at its peak. “Summer residents want to create green spaces that are devoid of a hint of the hustle and bustle of modernity. Therefore, more and more often, when decorating the garden, the owners are inspired by the traditions of the XVIII and XIX centuries. The opposite trend is futurism: many seek to get ahead of the future itself,” the expert intriguingly declares, hinting at the continuation of the conversation.
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