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Landscape Transformations

By Kymberly Taylor

[Courtesy Creative Land Design, Inc.]

Digging Deep

The pond reflecting the elegant facade of this contemporary home on the Corsica River was created out of a sinking front yard. When the landscaper began to clear the terrain and prepare the soil for a manicured lawn, he realized that, to do the job properly, it would take thousands of tons of soil to raise the landscape to the level of the home. So, instead of filling in, he dug deep. “We dug out the whole area out and then mounded that earth to create the banks,” he says. Two scarlet Japanese maples and complimentary golden plantings bracket the patio and frame the front doorway, adding a touch of symmetry to the informal scene. Evergreens and 30- foot trees were trucked in to convey the ambience of an older yet well-tended estate. The clay-bottom pond is surrounded by natural boulders artistically submerged in the soil and that echo the grains in home’s stone turrets. More design connections between the home and elements include a half-moon stone patio and a generous “sitting” step leading to the pond. Close inspection reveals that the generous steps mirror the thick decorative stone “sill” underneath the turret windows. Fast-growing native plantings, including sedum, pickerel rush, iris, and water lilies soften the home’s contemporary angles and, especially when they are blooming, add a wild, Eastern Shore feel.

Swimming with the Stars

[Courtesy Walnut Hill Landscape Company, Inc.]

These homeowners on South River’s Fishing Creek wanted to cook and dine al fresco, enjoy water views, and swim beneath the stars in a private outdoor room. In particular, they wanted a pool with a vanishing edge. When searching for a home, they rejected properties where critical area laws and county regulations, including setbacks, prevented its construction. “What they wanted was a simple vanishing edge, an endless stream of water,” says landscape company principal who also installed a solar shelf for tanning and “spill-over” spa. He notes that he had to lower the site’s grade by two feet, (or make a two-foot cut into the soil), in order to achieve a truly “vanishing” effect. Natural plantings and materials do not distract and ensure the audience is oriented to center stage: the magnificent views. A two-sided fireplace with a mantle made from barn wood from the 1800s provides warmth on chilly evenings and encourages midnight swims. Other amenities include a fountain with fiber-optic lighting, an out door shower, a cedar pergola, stacked stone walls capped with bluestone, and flagstone pathways. Colorful natural plantings are meant to provide, especially on overcast days, “an endless sea of color and texture.”

A Slippery Slope

[Courtesy McHale Landscape Design, Inc.]

This home tucked in a Crownsville neighborhood was perched upon a dangerous, eroding slope with no safe access to the dock or waterfront below. The homeowners wanted lush landscaping that would stabilize their hillside, a pool house, and steps that gradually descended to the dock. The landscape architecture design build team that tackled this challenge had to build a chute so they could transport the concrete and heavier items needed to construct the out building, wall, and steps. After analyzing the hillside’s soil composition, they decided to start over and replant with species that would deter and absorb storm-runoff and prevent erosion. After submitting a vegetation plan to the county, they cleared the entire hillside. They trucked in soil and covered the slope, right up to the water’s edge, with native and non-invading species that do well in heat and that are drought-tolerant. These include cone flowers, Shasta daisies, joe pie weed, liatris, native hibiscus, and ‘River Birch’, a tree that thrives in this area. The colorful scene appears eclectic and nonchalant, but is no accident. “We mixed the coneflowers in with the daisies to give the scene a nice pop,” says one professional instrumental in the site’s overall design. A small but crucial detail is a small deck on the pool house roof which ensures homeowners can survey their flowers and Magothy River views.

Side Yard Sensation

[Courtesy Jan Kirsh Landscape Company]

Homeowners on this gusty peninsula wanted to transform their side yard into a patio and garden that would stand up to ferocious winds and that would not obstruct the view from the terrace, even when mature. The room just behind the pergola overlooks the garden so they wanted the space to be especially attractive in the winter. The landscape architect they chose notes that garden sites with river front exposure on three sides can be tricky when it comes to plant choices. “The plantings need to stand up to the elements, look appropriate and natural for the Eastern Shore environment, and suit the ‘feel’ of the existing architecture,” she says. With this in mind, she designed a natural landscape and a structure whose dimensions are not overwhelming—there is plenty of room to relax and share pleasantries under the pergola.

Kymberly Taylor, Home Editor of WhatsUp?Annapolis, is hard at work transforming her own“back forty.”

Tags: landscape backyard home and garden renovation before and after

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