The Orangery | Orangeries In Wood

Timber built kitchen orangery

An Orangery provides a more substantial extension than a conservatory, is suitable for certain types of listed buildings and, if it is sympathetically designed, can be granted planning permission even in a conservation area. The Orangery is fast growing in popularity and now seems to be becoming the preferred option for modern glazed extensions. Wood is the perfect material to give the style, warmth and luxury feel that our clients are looking for. A timber orangery gives a timeless feel and a sense of real quality.

A recent more trend has been to introduce sliding folding doors so that the whole of one side can be opened up to the garden. You will find examples of this style in our contemporary orangery gallery.

A David Salisbury hardwood orangery made in the UK, will work equally well in both traditional and contemporary settings and offers a stylish alternative to a standard house extension. They are wonderfully light and airy spaces due to the lantern roofs as well as being cosy and inviting in the winter. For this reason orangeries provide unique multi-purpose living space and are frequently used as kitchen extensions. In the last five years we have seen a significant growth in the popularity of orangeries, and customers who might have opted for a conservatory are now just as likely to choose an orangery. We make both contemporary and traditional orangery styles, see the range of photographs on this page, the traditional orangeries page and in the orangery photo gallery.

Background to Orangery Design

A history of the orangery can be found in Wikipedia, but essentially the orangery spread to northern Europe form Italy in the 16th century. Early orangeries were unheated and had large south facing windows with tiled roofs. As the fashion spread north, being taken up first by the Dutch, heating and eventually glass roofs were added. As the orangery became more fashionable further embellishments were added such as pilasters and decorative mouldings.

In the UK, Stone-built orangeries with large sliding sash windows and lantern roofs were forerunners to conservatories and date back to the 17th Century. They were made from timber and painted white. Some years ago David Salisbury carried out a major refurbishment on an eighteenth century orangery at a stately home.

Originally, Orangeries were designed to protect valuable and exotic plants and fruits during the winter months. Early orangeries had large windows and doors within a stone building. Today, the orangery retain a unique character that sets them apart from conservatories, but the distinction between a conservatory and an orangery has evolved over time and now orangeries are generally defined as having one or more lantern roofs. These lantern roofs are supported on beams within a flat roof perimeter, which is set within a somewhat heavier framework than a conservatory. Sometimes even today orangeries will be stone or brick built with windows inserted as you will see from some of our examples.