Raised garden in Victorian conversion
 

Hi

I am very interested in buying a flat in central London that I have recently viewed. This is a basement flat in a converted Victorian terraced house.

When I viewed the flat, I was a bit puzzled by the layout and would like some advice if possible. This is what it looks like: it is a slice of garden 14m long and 4m wide. At the end, there is a high brick wall and two tall trees. I was not able to establish what kind of trees. One of the trees has a Tree Protection Order (TPO) from the council.

As I walk out of the french doors from the bedroom, I walk into a small paved patio and a few steps take me up roughly 1m high to the rest of the garden. The garden is "raised" at that level for about 8m. This part has a lawn and a flowerbed on the side. After the 8m, there is another elevation of 1m with small steps up by the trees.

I can fully understand that the back end of the garden needs to support the TPO trees so has to stay somewhat elevated, But what about the middle bit? It is framed by a brick wall, making it all looking a bit untidy somehow. I can add that the previous owner has built a bedroom in an extension which comes out a bit into the garden. For some reason this building stands surrounded by this elevation leaving a space of 30cm to the wall of the elevation. This looks like a hazard for anyone walking around in the garden to me.

I guess the original building did not make use of a basement exit to the garden before so the middle level may well be where the original level was. Ideally, I would like to remove the middle bit and level out the garden to get a more even surface and a better view. Does anyone know if there are any compelling reasons why the garden is laid out this way? Has anyone undertaken a major project of removing a chunk of garden like this - is it hard to organize/expensive/issues with drainage? And lastly, any ideas how much soil and space a 15m leafy tree would need to be healthy?

Apologies for long message.

You have several pertinent replies on your other posting, but no-one mentioned that you must find out what kind of tree it is with a TPO. Then you should consult a tree expert as to tree health - no point preserving a tree that might drop dead suddenly.

As to the middle bit - how about planning a re-sloping of the ground, with a ramp leading up rather than steps. Sometimes these raised back areas are better left as they are more interesting to look at than a flat plot of mingy grass.