Step Entrance to Woods
Composite stone steps lead from one garden space down into another. The concrete step stone walkway repeats materials used elsewhere in the garden. The sculpture at the end of the walk was made on-site Spaces are created with mostly native and traditional Southern plant materials including Southern Magnolia, dogwoods, oak and maple trees, hollies, hydrangeas, gardenias, itea, and camellias. Birmingham, Al
Garden Entrance
This complicated garden required importing hundreds of yards of fill to build the walk and fountain shown in this image. The focal point of the garden is created with the grey strip rubble crescent runnel which culminates in the urn fountain. This fountain is visible from multiple locations in the garden and serves as a pivot for the overall layout. Spaces are created with mostly native and traditional Southern plant materials including Southern Magnolia, dogwoods, oak and maple trees, hollies, hydrangeas, gardenias, itea, and camellias. Each focal point in the garden reveals the next space in the garden. Native was used as well as gas lighting. Birmingham, Al (more…)
A concrete and brick sidewalk is used to create a riding loop through the garden for children and bikes. The spaces were created with traditional southern garden plants including itea, southern magnolia, tea olive, viburnums, azaleas, daylily, hydrangeas and assorted other shrubs and groundcovers for shade and scent. Birmingham, Al.
Backyard Track
Entry Walkway
This is an entry into a backyard garden. The concrete step stones were dry laid in crusher run limestone gravel. Massing was created with Indian hawthorn, lambs ear and dwarf yaupons, with the “tunnel” formed from wax myrtle and Nellie R. Stevens holly. Birmingham, Al.
This modernist garden was design as a transitioning materials walkway. The patio is graded from stamped concrete to solid concrete step stones, to running concrete step stones in crusher run gravel and finally to crusher run gravel only. Crisp edging is provided by metal. Plantings consist of native plant material and vegetables. Birmingham, Al. (more…)
The Spiral Garden
The Spiral Garden was designed for the curator of the Birmingham Botanical Gardens and built for a show in Knoxville, TN. The design is based on an overlay of the Fibonacci sequence, ADA, and the structural unit of CMU (8”). It was designed to pull the visitor up though a ramp along a series of cascading pools with fire burning at the uppermost fountain and steps down. The elements of fire, water, earth and sky were all present in the design. Changes in structure (cascades) were a reflection of quantum changes in the basic building unit. The proposed stone is travertine, which has spiral shells (conforming to the Fibonacci sequence) embedded. Not built permanently.
The Spiral Garden Display
Appalacian Mountain Stones
Drawf Hookera and Stream
Who says you can’t move mountains? Through carefully planned creative landscaping, I was able to create a mountainous feel in this clients backyard. This stream and pond were created as a part of a courtyard renovation. The owners wanted to create a sense of being in the Appalachian Mountains. This was achieved by using native mountain materials such as native stone, ferns, serviceberry, rhododendron, leucothoe, etc. The patio is stamped concrete in a brown tone to match the natural stone.
This landscape planting plan was designed to create curb appeal. The issue was that from the street the garage was highly visible, but the front door was hidden.
Lawn Architecture
We used carefully selected plantings of miscanthus, sedum, black-eyed suzie and liriope to screen the garage, frame the view to the house and literally point the way to the front door. A mass planting of hollies at the far side of the yard screened the neighbor’s house reinforcing the view to the door.
Knoxville, TN
I am excited to be able to offer my customers and friends a landscaping focused blog that will keep you up to date on my most recent projects. Photos will be added shortly with details of each project.
If you are located in the Birmingham, Alabama area and want to learn more about the benefits of landscape architecture, please fill out our brief contact form and I will respond to you shortly.
I service the following areas:
