This client recently purchased this residential property and had me look at her backyard with her. Neither of us could figure out what the prior owner had in mind with this landscaping when designing the outdoor living area.

You had a nice black ornamental fence enclosing a small and cramped sitting area on the patio, and this was surrounded by a lawn area, also enclosed but this time with a taller chain link fence with white slats for privacy, making it seem like it was “yard out” time at prison. Think about it, if you had to rush to help a small child playing in the lawn area, you would have to run around one fenced area to get to another fenced area. What!!!.

Taking into account how small an area it already was; encompassing two areas within one made it even smaller; and limited the space as to what you could use it for.

The solution was to remove the existing black fence, which was attractive and ornate. We would then utilize the black fence to the right of the patio to create and help to hide the AC/Unit and Heat Pump, which currently was obtrusive being placed right off the patio and unsightly as well.

The lawn area was in need of “dire” maintenance with patches everywhere of dead, dying grass mixed with thatch. To this area we aerated the lawn and applied a thin layer of composted soil and then seeded these areas to promote grass growth and make for a uniform lawn appearance. Straw was laid upon the seed for retention in the wind and storms.

The existing bed was overgrown with shrubbery and had little in the way of flowering plants, décor and shape at all. The larger shrubs were trimmed and pruned accordingly and the beds were ever so slightly enlarged and edge to give it a flowing shape, encompassing the side of the garage, the rear of the property and then extended about 8 ft on the right side and arced in along the fence on the property line.

Within this space we added some seasonal color utilizing celosia and other annuals. Combined with the weeping cypress and hostas, these annuals provided great color and contrast.

Along the perimeter of the existing patio we removed all the ornamental grasses and planted them en masse amidst the extended area of the rear bed on the right.

Where the black fence once was off the patio and out to the garage, we built and installed a retaining wall following the perimeter of the driveway and patio area.  We cut in an opening for easy access from the garage to the back yard and laid stone there for a short path.

Along the rear of the patio length we stepped back 10” and created a beautiful and comfortable sitting bench out of the retaining wall, adding a nice space for extra guests and/or visitors.

We topped off the entire length of the retaining wall with a 2 x 10, treated and stained a darker color than the lighter wood of the retaining wall. This gave the wall not only a really nice extra “pop” and made the wall more visually appealing, it can be used as an area for small container flower and vegetable gardening come the growing seasons.

In the front of the residence, we cleaned out the bed, edged the perimeter, added the beautiful topiary on the left as a focal point and planted seasonal color.

Within the side bed on the right we trimmed back the overgrowing miscanthus and cleaned out the bed and then added color again.

Now the owner has a user friendly backyard that suits a multitude of purposes and visually looks stunning, a residence that now has a pleasant appearance from the street, and has added property value to her investment.

almost PERFECT Landscaping offers outdoor living area and retaining wall design and build services for both residential and commercial properties within the Bergen County, New Jersey area. If you need some help, hit us up on the contact page or phone (201) 389-6979.