Verdant Design

The Williams needed a landscape that brings balance: one that gives them a flat, usable backyard; accessible for their relatives; contained for children and pets, yet not confining the views in the neighborhood. They decided on a wall-fence combination that allows for permeable views. The plantings were minimalistic recalling a modern Japanese landscape. Native plantings, such as Kentucky canebrake bamboo and Prairie Dropseed, are used throughout. Earthen ramps give an alternative to to using most of the stairs. Both the front and backyards are slightly raised planes that define the public and private spaces.

The Williams Landscape centers on a simple, yet modern landscape. For them this meant embracing some forms reminiscent of Japanese styles and plant selection. These images show some of how this landscape was created. Video of the landscape will be shown in coming days.

[View with PicLens]

Different clients need different kinds of assistance in order to see their dreams realized. The Morgans needed help so they could implement changes to their landscape themselves. They have just moved into a new home but the landscaping that was provided was already creating maintenance hassles. Most of the attention was on street appeal, so the landscape plan surrounds the home with a more complete plan. There is an emphasis on implementable projects that could be done so the product that was produced was an instructional video animation. It shows what to move, where to move it and what to add. (You can click on the black box on the right side of the gray bar to view it as a full screen.)

We have taken the images over the last year to show how the rain garden changes through the seasons. The functions of filtering and infiltrating water does change seasonally, but the volume of the depression does help even in the warming and thawing through the winter. The native plants that are used also provide a strong root system in every season. This is why they are so important to create a long-lasting rain garden. This is starting the fourth year of this rain garden!