We took advantage of the hill in this Lincoln front yard by creating custom cultured stone raised planters and retaining walls. The result helps to achieve the homeowners’ renovation goals: to have a unique feature and creative walkway, to enjoy a courtyard for both relaxing and entertaining, and to replace their lawn with hardscape and plants.  Although the existing paver patio does create an enjoyable outdoor living space, a vertical element is needed to give it some punch. Elevation changes can be a boon to creating an original landscape design.  Walls clad with cultured stone are set off by poured colored concrete caps.

The photos below show the process, which is not complete yet.  We developed a sample stone pallet to help the installers visualize how the differing stone sizes and colors could interplay.  As I’m writing this, the yard is being planted, dripped and barked. Tomorrow I will buy pots for the courtyard area–to provide some greenery and soften the hardscape all around. The final touch will be painting the shutters and door to harmonize the colors. (The homeowners graciously agreed to temporarily paint the shutters in a tone similar to the trim, just so we could see how the colors are being drawn together.  Note how changing the color of the shutters even temporarily changes how the rest of the landscape colors are perceived.) Of course, you can’t see the plants planted yet. Kangaroo paws, red hot pokers, and boxwoods are just some of the plants that will be awesome when they grow in.