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| Before |
What a transformation! It just takes one look at the ‘before’ picture to appreciate how exciting it can be to tear out your lawn! This is also a great example of do it yourself.
The front yard was poorly suited to the house when they bought it in 1999 – a thirsty lawn that was both interrupted and surrounded by roses, and caged by a white picket fence, framing a house design that was anything but Ozzie & Harriet. Parking can be a problem in the area, so they determined to make a semi-circle driveway to always have access to the house. This presented a challenge to create an attractive design that gave some measure of privacy, was durable, low maintenance and low water consumption. The solution they arrived at was a cluster of birch trees at an island in front of the circular driveway, to provide a screen and visual appeal, surrounded primarily by grasses and flax on all sides. They added some rosemary for a durable and fragrant side hedge, and lavender for color. They consulted one landscape designer for initial ideas, but afterward designed the entire yard themselves. A contractor provided the concrete work, but all planting and other hardscape was done by the owners, over time on weekends.
Sprinklers are set into the center, with drip irrigation and micro-sprinklers where possible. The landscape maintenance is minimal, so there is little need for anyone other than a gardener occasionally for leaf cleanup.
