A tired lawn is transformed into a rambunctious cottage garden that blooms year-round
The owner approached me with one request: color. Valley Water came out to measure for a rebate while I re-imagined this tired lawn as a wild, welcoming, romantic cottage garden. We kept established trees, roses, and azaleas, added a stepping stone path and stuffed it with creeping thyme, and planted a high textured meadow of tall grasses and flowering natives.
BEFORE
AFTER: lupines, poppies, penstemons, and more.
BEFORE: soil has blower damage, poorly designed irrigation, unnatural bender board edges
AFTER: Poppies, armeria, thyme, and heuchera: soft, natural, inviting.
BEFORE: Suffering borders, unnecessary edging, no mulch to conserve moisture.
AFTER: existing geraniums and roses blend beautifully into the new plantings.
So much more welcoming!
After we finished the front yard, the owner asked if we could do the back. It’s a small space with a lovely hardscape and some helathy established shrubs, but all the underplanting had suffered or died from blower damage and haphazard irrigation. I knew the owner’s taste and put this design together very quickly. A small and joyful project!
