Back landscape project: almost completely done
Annie Deighnaugh
9 months ago
last modified: 9 months ago
We decided we wanted to improve the landscaping on the back of our property, and after years of thinking, permitting, and planning, we are finally 99% done with the execution. The landscape architect and the team he brought in to get it done couldn't have been better...they listened, they were caring, creative, and skilled in what they did. They took pride in their work and man did they work hard. Plus they were a pleasure to deal with...showed up when they said they would which, these days, is a miracle!
Here are a couple of befores. The pics are deceiving in terms of size and scope. The pond is about 1/2 acre in size. The slope on the hill is steeper than it appears. Our prior hardscape included the patio and stone wall, but it just stopped there. The rest was left as grassy hill that had to be weed whacked as it was too steep to mow, and we had New England's ugliest ditch (on the right) where the inlet which brings water into the pond.
The steepness of the slope made it very difficult to walk down and almost impossible to tend the gardens there. That needed fixing. The ugly ditch is in the foreground:
Note the big rock in the foreground...
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Work, work work! My final project is almost complete
Comments (15)Ken, the yellow weeper is 'Boyko's Sundown'. Some are more golden then others, this one I hand picked because it had such great bright splotches. It also seemed fairly narrow which is good considering it's spot! As for the property line, this is probably the best aspect of my piece of earth, it's both vague *and* heavily forested. I am next to a corner lot(their backyard extends to my left side yard) and there is a greenbelt behind me for about 150 yards. It has been designated native habitat by the county and thus without serious zoning changes can never be developed. Most of the large, existing trees on my property are huge already. There are hundreds of doug-firs exceeding 50' and many well over 100' tall with the only thing visible to the gardener or visitor are the elephant trunks shooting upwards. A few of my younger doug-firs out front are about 10-15 years old and still have limbs to the ground. These are what I mean I will slowly trim up, exposing new spaces for conifers that take some shade or part shade. Dougs grow like *crazy* here, so in 15-20 years I'll be surrounded skyward by plants exceeding 150' at which point the only problem will be trees dumping branches and needles in storms and the occasional large tree coming down(a scary thing indeed). Long term, many of the plants that it becomes apparent will be much too big to stay will end up in the local botanical garden which I am helping to design. Almost 100 acres of space, over half undeveloped so there should be plenty of space for these trees to settle in for the long haul. We've worked out a nominal trade/price of about $5 cash/$10 trade per year per plant. Not a lot of money, but that's not the point anyways. Finally, I *welcome* the day I run out of space. It'll be good on my back, budget and nice to know I have a 'complete' garden, with plants that are really nice to have around. Two or three years, I'd guess! -Will...See MoreNew landscaping project complete...for now.
Comments (6)Thanks all. Gary: Gardening is my only form of exercise so I like to go balls out. Most of my perennials are fully hardy with the exception of things like EE's, purple heart, etc... The palms have been planted en masse with ease of protecting in mind. We'll see how everything does this winter. Jim: It wasn't so bad digging it out. All said and done, it probably took 3 weeks of an hour or two per day. Hopefully that nice fat needle will sail through the winter with minimal protection. I haven't decided on how to protect the yuccas yet. With the amount of snow we get, I think I'm in for some trouble. Hopefully all the snow will help with the palms though....See MoreSapele kitchen, almost done...
Comments (44)Well, what a nice surprise to run across this old post! I was just perusing GardenWeb and Houzz as we get revved up for another remodel, when a google search for “sapele kitchens” turned up this, my “almost-done” victory lap post. Please forgive me my moment of sentimentality, but reading through my post and the subsequent comments has me a bit verklempt; we are, as of this writing, only a few days away (probably) from committing to buy a new house, which means leaving this one, and our wonderful kitchen. Much has changed in the 5+ years since this post went up: The backsplash behind the range was installed; the rather wispy red Japanese maple that you can see in our backyard in a couple of the pics above is now pretty robust and magnificent; we had to say goodbye to our beloved boxer a few months back (our “first born”); we have a son, an amazing 16 month old,who has, of course, become the center of our universe; we are working on a sibling for him. With a growing family, and frequent visits from out of town grandparents, we are feeling a bit cramped in the home we thought we would be in long term. We found a new place in a lovely neighborhood, despite Seattle’s current crazy real estate market (after getting absurdly outbid on some places—like over asking by almost 25% of a big asking price in one case). It’s from 1907, was updated in the 70s and 80s, but needs a good overhaul. (I’ve tried to attach a couple of pics of the current kitchen but this interface limits comment size so much (~21k characters) that it seems that photos aren’t going to be an option. I’ll try to post some pics in comments to follow). It has served the current owners well over the last 45 years, but it is time for an update. It’s certainly a first world problem, but it makes me sad to leave our current kitchen after having put so much thought and energy into it, and after it turned out so beautifully. It has been such a joy to spend time in it. But the real reason I started writing this comment: I thought I would right two wrongs that I have just noted while reading through my original, ancient post: I never once acknowledged by name our architect, who played a primary role in bringing our current kitchen to fruition. His name is Andrew Borges, of Rohleder Borges Architecture (http://www.rb-a.net/), and he was fantastic to work with. So much so, that we are teaming up with him again for the next remodel. I never posted any photos of the backsplash behind the range, as I said (above) that I would do. I still really love the tile that we chose—an etched limestone (I think) with a repeating dahlia pattern. As I was looking at Andrew’s firm’s website just now, I realized that he has a pic of our kitchen with the backsplash in view so I have included that here too. Here is a link to the image, in case I can’t figure out how to post it here: http://www.rb-a.net/res-montkit1.html I suspect you’ll hear from me again soon, as I query the collective GW wisdom on this new project. And in 6 months or so, our current home (kitchen included) will likely be hitting the market, just in case any of you might be interested.......See MoreOur liquor has a home! Next project (almost) completed...
Comments (15)Funny, Williamsem. I guess I never really thought about it. We like to entertain and it makes sense to have a nice space to prepare drinks and store everything in one general location so it's ready to go. Currently, I have to go to some effort to retrieve the bottles and glassware, create a place to set it out, yada yada. It's annoying and I always forget something. I figure the easier I make things for myself, the more often I'll feel like entertaining and offering up a glass of wine, martini, cosmo, or whatever else I have the makings for. So it's all about function. Yeah, that's the ticket. Function.. :)...See MoreAnnie Deighnaugh
9 months agolast modified: 9 months agoThank you all for your kind words. I'm glad you like it and if it inspires some other design, more's the better. It's been a fun project. I appreciate that it doesn't say "new" or "epcot". One thing that's been important to us is to keep it looking appropriate to the site and appropriate near our 200 yr old barn. As DH kept saying, we're not building Versailles! Formal gardens with parterres and fountains and roman statues would look silly.
I need a word though...the patio is what we call the area near the house...
...but down by the inlet -- I have to stop calling it a ditch! -- that's also technically a patio so it's easy to get confused. I could call one a terrace, though neither are actually terraced, though the garden is ... so maybe this one is a terrace and the one by the pond is a patio? Or do you have any other suggestions?Annie Deighnaugh
9 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
9 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
9 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
9 months ago
nicole___
8 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
8 months agolast modified: 8 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
8 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
8 months agoAnnie Deighnaugh
8 months ago
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Annie DeighnaughOriginal Author