This before and after has so many great insider lessons to learn from.  To look at the before, I suspect many people would not think this is too bad.  But the after is so much better.  Obviously there is the addition of the pool house, but I think even without that the change would be interesting.  Want to know the tricks that make this work?

1) The steps.  Before they were quite tight and compact but being rebuilt they have a lot more room to breath, are more comfortable to use and simply look more natural.

2) Plants, Plants, Plants.  Too much hardscaping (the love of so many contractors) is simply too much hardscaping.  This makeover spreads things out, letting elevation changes work themselves out with slopes rather than walls.  Walls don’t need to be so tall and over bearing and plants hold the land and provide a softness and interest that is always better that hardscaping.

3) The use of boulders and natural shaped stone can help any paved area to transition into planting.  The naturalized look is very useful for blending and creating interest where there isn’t any.   I find this technique particularly helpful when dealing with gardens around McMansion homes in neighborhoods where developers have unfortunately strip mined the land before commencing construction.

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