custom orangery, exterior view with pool

— 4 —Custom Orangery

BEFORE THE MID-NINETEENTH CENTURY, when the technology used to construct glass roofs was developed, an orangery was simply a building with large south facing windows. Orangeries were used to conserve the specimen citrus trees stored inside during the cold winter months.

Today, however, an orangery is functionally synonymous with a conservatory or a greenhouse — although the name sounds more exotic.

custom orangery | exterior view detail of windows
custom orangery | exterior view different window styles

This example of a neoclassical orangery connects the back of the white-painted brick colonial with the garden and landscape beyond. It mediates between the formality and scale of the home’s brick façade and the informality of family life on the terrace.

The design approach minimizes the height of the building’s roof as to not interfere with the windows, door, and small balcony of the master bedroom above.

custom orangery | interior view | light fixtures
custom orangery | exterior view | flows well with current house

CONSERVATORIES WITH LOW-PITCHED ROOFS AND A MORE SUBSTANTIAL STRUCTURE HISTORICALLY WERE CALLED ORANGERIES, BUILDINGS WHERE CITRUS TREES WERE NURTURED AND GROWN.