On the Outside

Outbuildings on a property - such as greenhouses and storage sheds - can provide practical work space. These structures can serve as focal points in a garden or spots for relaxation or child's play. The following photos feature outbuildings that add beauty and charm to their surroundings . . . 

"A greenhouse and cold frames provide the Mehigans a place to start seeds, root cuttings, and winter over tender plants; yew hedges are clipped to repeat the crenelations of the Old Rectory tower."

Old Rectory, Netherbury, West Dorset, U.K. - home of Amanda and Simon Mehigan.

Photography by Jerry Harpur.

"Classic English Garden" written by Elvin McDonald.

Traditional Home.

"A gentle stream flows through the bog garden, with hostas, ligularias, and white calla lilies. This part of the property was hopelessly wet in winter. Rather than installing drainage, homeowner Amanda Mehigan decided 'to go with what we had,' beginning by digging the stream bed in what became the fascinating bog garden."

Old Rectory, Netherbury, West Dorset, U.K. - home of Amanda and Simon Mehigan.

Photography by Jerry Harpur.

"Classic English Garden" written by Elvin McDonald.

Traditional Home.

Mount Sharon Farm, home of Charlie and Mary Lou Seilheimer, in Orange County, Virginia.

Landscape architect: Charles J. Stick.

"Trim and Tidy Virginia Boxwood Garden"

 Southern Living.

"The gazebo recalls Moorish designs in its graceful arches and tinkling bells suspended from the cupola."
Overbrook Farm - Lexington, Kentucky.
Photography by Pieter Estersohn.
Photo from Kentucky: Historic Houses and Horse Farms of Bluegrass Country (The Monacelli Press) by Pieter Estersohn.
"Kentucky: Historic Houses and Horse Farms"
Garden and Gun.

"Roses also blanket a silo, with blooms below ranging from deep purple to soft cream."

Litchfield County, Connecticut, garden of Anne Bass.

Photography by John M. Hall.

"An Elegant Connecticut Garden"

Veranda.

"The gardens of the estate, which date to the seventeenth century, feature a medieval colombier, or dovecote. The formal geometric structures of the landscape and structural design lent themselves as the perfect backdrop to the eclectic reception."

Chateau de Breteuil, the site of the wedding reception of New York interior designer and stylist Kelly d'Halluin.

Photography by Mallory Samson.

"Parisian Countryside Wedding" by Tom Woodham.

Veranda.

"The picturesque structure was formerly a privy."

Ben and Cindy Lenhardt's 1743 home in Charleston, South Carolina's historic district.

Photography by Brie Williams.

Test by Rebecca Christian.

"Gorgeous Formal Charleston Garden" produced by Andrea Caughey.

Traditional Home.

"Pigeonnier with Gothic arch, designed by Gatewood."

Americus, Georgia, home of Furlow Gatewood.

Photography by Max Kim-Bee.

"Well-Lived: 19th-Century Southern Cottage" by Carol Prisant.

Veranda.

"The pigeonnier is used as a playhouse with a garden of its own, delighting the Smith grandchildren."

Glenn and Judy Smith's home in The Woodlands, a suburb of Houston, Texas.

Architect: Ken Tate.

Landscape architect: Helen Grivich. 

Photography byJohn Granen.

"Garden With 'Old South' Style" written by Rebecca Christian.

Traditional Home.

"Set at the end of a pear allée, the shed is modeled after a pavilion in Williamsburg."

Landscape design by Glenn Hillman.

Photography by Kindra Clineff.

"Classic Connecticut Garden" written by Tovah Martin.

Traditional Home.

"The property’s original smokehouse" on the grounds of Brookside, a renovated Greek Revival home.

Photography by Caroline Allison.

"Homeplace: Country Retreat" by Julia Reed. 

Garden and Gun (August/September 2013).

"[William] Christie designed the rustic shed and had it built by a local carpenter; it is open on both sides to offer a walkway between gardens."

Le Batiment, the 16th-century French home of harpsichordist and conductor William Christie. 

Photography by Simon Watson.

"A 16th-Century French Countryside Estate" by Melissa Biggs Bradley.

House Beautiful (October 2013).  

"Echoing the blue of the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains is the roof of the old stone smokehouse, now used as a rental."

Silverbrook Farm, Dotti Shetterly's 18th-century home in Purcellville, Virginia.

Photography by Helen Norman.

Text by Rebecca Christian.

"Virginia Farm Garden" produced by James Cramer.

Traditional Home. 

"A circa 1904 outbuilding on the property now stores firewood."
Taylor and Deidra Smith's "secluded retreat inside Atlanta's city limits on the banks of the Chattahoochee."
Landscape architects: Missy Madden and Todd Yeager of Bellwether Landscape Architects.
Photography by Emily Followill.
"The River Garden" by T. Edward Nickens.
Garden and Gun (February/March 2012).

"Small shed at the Lauder family Southampton home."

Photography by Sarah Bray.

"Behind-The-Shoot: Aerin Lauder in Southampton"

Veranda. (The original article appeared in the January/February edition of Veranda.)