Time to get airborne

In London, homes with outside space are at a premium. Innovative urbanites have developed a new trend: sky gardening.

The good news is that roughly 13 per cent of Greater London is made up of green space. All of us would like a bit of it, even if it is up on the roof. In fact, airborne backyards have benefits that their more grounded cousins don't: they are secure and often lowmaintenance.

While planners are loathe to allow building on old roofs, the same is not true for new builds. Developers are taking advantage of this and profiting from the extra 20 per cent a roof terrace on a property brings in.

New roof terraces are exotic places; increasingly plants are having to make room for barbecue areas, hot tubs and even putting greens.

The Patels: 'With the doors open, the living room becomes an open-air pavilion'

Kate and Hitesh Patel had become used to smallspace living, thanks to six years in Hong Kong and Bangkok. The couple, who work in education and IT, moved to London two years ago. They bought a duplex apartment on the sixth and

seventh f loors of a converted mill in Whitechapel so they could have a spacious terrace. The layout of the apartment is upside down, with the main living room occupying the upper floor, surrounded on three sides by the terrace; thus the inside living space leads seamlessly to the outside.

"On a warm day, with the doors open onto the garden, the living room becomes an open-air pavilion," says Hitesh. "And the proximity of the outside space means that we're out there as much as we can be, even in the winter."

Hitesh adds that the terrace's wall-to-wall bamboo screening makes it feel secluded, but it is also a great space for socialising. "We can easily have 20 people out here without feeling crowded."

The terrace is densely planted with windtolerant plants, including grasses, bamboo, euphorbia, silver birch and olive trees, which thrive in their lofty location, cosseted by Kate and a built-in irrigation system.

Fabulous views take in the City, Crystal Palace and Canary Wharf - less glamorous landmarks have been edited out with judiciously positioned foliage. The terrace also allows a great view of one of the London skyline's premier events: Guy Fawkes Night. "You can see fireworks going up all over London," says Hitesh.