Developers are hunting for suburban gardens big and small like this one to build new homes on. Property Editor Orna Mulcahy reports

The big suburban garden that has room for a pony, a tennis court and a greenhouse is on the way out as housebuilders target every leafy neighbourhood from Clontarf to Carrickmines.

Houses with large gardens on the outskirts of the city are increasingly being sought by developers - particularly if they are close to transport interchanges such as the M50 or the Luas - because of the scarcity of development sites and the strong prices being paid for infill developments.

One property that is likely to attract builders rather than househunters is Rockhurst on Enniskerry Road in Kilternan, Co Dublin.

The modern bungalow standing on 1.78 acres of level ground is expected to make over €4 million at a Lisney auction on February 22nd. Given that the land is zoned residential, it could accommodate a small development of houses, subject to planning.

With an area action plan coming down the tracks for Kilternan, the village is set for big expansion, and residents with large plots of land are likely to cash in on the huge demand for well-located development sites. The area still has a fair sprinkling of what are now known as hobby farmers, who still keep horses, sheep and cattle on land that varies from 10 to 40 acres.

Kilternan residents will be keeping a close eye on nearby Glenamuck Road in Carrickmines, where houses on small acreage are being snapped up for high density development. Recent sales on the road in clude Blackberry Hill, a three-acre property owned by Senator Shane Ross which is due to be redeveloped after a housebuilder paid close to €4 million for it in a private deal.

Nearby on Glenamuck Road, Lisney has put an advised minimum value (AMV) of €3 million on Brambledown, a 20-year-old bungalow on almost an acre of land. The property, which goes to auction on February 21st, is likely to be developed with a mix of townhouses and duplex units, according to the agents.

The area is set to change beyond recognition because of its prime location beside the M50 and the plans to extend the Luas to Cherrywood. Many of the sites are likely to be used for apartments which will be bought by families trading down and by their children who want to stay in the area.

The redevelopment potential of gardens is continuously being realised, particularly in more affluent areas like Foxrock, following some very significant land sales in that neighbourhood last year.

Lisney fetched €22 million for three adjoining houses with a total of 3.75 acres last October, which works out at €7.3 million per acre.

In that instance each house standing alone would not have been worth €7.3 million, according to David Bewley of Lisney.

"We are going to see more cooperative sales, especially where the land values have exceeded the value of the house and garden combined."

Nearby, a site of 14 acres on Brighton Road is about to be sold for over €40 million through McNally Handy & Partners.

The rush to buy suburban parcels like these come at a time when gardening on a large scale is no longer popular with time-poor double income couples. Even hiring a landscape gardener part time is not enough to maintain the kind of garden that Hugh Leonard's Da tended lovingly over a lifetime in Dalkey, Co Dublin.

That two-acre garden and the house that went with it, Santa Maria was sold last year for around €9.7 million by Colliers Jackson-Stops. Planning permission has since been sought for a scheme of houses and apartments.

However, housebuilders are not only chasing the larger gardens: they are also after smaller plots, such as mews sites and corner gardens. Estate agents will trumpet the potential of modest sites, so long as the access is right. Even the smallest town gardens may not survive the current building boom.

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