70's Tract Home Remodel

This residence is a typical mid to late 70's tract home built in north central Plano. The existing landscape consisted of a narrow bed bordered with wood landscape timbers containing some severely butchered Crape Myrtles, a few woody shrubs and some Asian Jasmine ground cover.

We designed a simple flowing design that carries across the front of the house and extends to include the fence facade.

The "Pink Velour" Crape Myrtle is a semi-dwarf variety that fits most residential landscapes with out the need for excessive pruning often referred to as 'Crape Murder'. The shrub groups were selected to provide color and texture while maintaining a low growth habit that is easily maintained.

Front Circular Drive; "To Be or Not to Be"

I was contacted by this homeowner around Christmas time last year, with the idea of removing the front circular drive and redesigning the front landscape. We began with a few different design scenarios with the lead walk and landscape layouts with the associated costs.

After a couple of months the decision was made to keep the driveway, but replace the concrete with a decorative finish. The brick retaining wall was lowered and repaired.

So, the existing landscape needed attention. My idea was to remove all of the grass from behind the wall and plant the space between the house and wall. We also wanted to create a planting area in the space between the drive and the city sidewalk to soften the expanse of concrete.

Starting over

The challenges associated with this project began many years ago when this house was built. Because the home was constructed with a west exposure, there was race to create some shade and block the afternoon sun from entering the house. Once the shade was created, the plants that tolerated the intense sun now suffer from a lack of sunlight.

A few elements from the builders landscape package were able to be utilized. The Nellie R. Stevens Hollies that frame the house were saved along with the Live Oaks that shade the lawn. The balance of the plant material was removed to make way for the new planting areas.

Most of the plant material used in this installation was selected for its natural form, color and texture, and ease of maintenance like Spreading Plum Yew, Bloodgood Japanese Maple, Cast Iron Plant, Moon Bay Nandina, and Clara Indian Hawthorn.

Ripping out a Builders Landscape

This project began last fall when this house was in the final stages of completion. Working with the homeowner we developed a design that helped to support and embellish this corner lot. Knowing that the builder was required to install a minimum number of landscape trees and shrubs , the design indicated where the shade trees needed to be located. We utilized most of the shrubs provided by the builder in the new design.
This corner lot featured a large utility box near the driveway which needed to be screened. I incorporated a bed shape that included both the tree on the corner and the utility box. Too often I see a large square block of shrubs that covers a smaller square block that is the utility box. The idea here is to create an organic shape that softens the box without drawing attention to what we are trying to hide.