Our client's home at the edge of the DesPlaines River was due for an entire gut rehab, and CSG was retained to design and install the gardens. Then we got the call; HGTV would be featuring the home in its Before & After program, and they were on a very tight shooting schedule. Could we do it? The answer was an emphatic yes.
Our clients liked big ideas and dramatic scale, and were considering some form of water feature in the plan. We began by rethinking the entire plot, breaking up the front garden, driveway and long entryway into manageable visual and navigable spaces. We then designed a pond just off the entry which featured a long spillway running beneath the bluestone steps leading to the front door. The pond, created from large outcropping stones, was stocked with koi and a mix of bold, blooming water plantings.
A long perennial bed adjacent to the new lawn leads down to the viewing area overlooking the river. The bluestone walk leads from the front entry to the boathouse. Ornamental grasses, blooming perennials, roses and mixed shrubs comprise the planting mix in and around the entryway and sides of the home.
Under the enclosed upper walkway connecting the new home and the new rec room
a secluded side garden was created for coffee and contemplation, and features a mix of shade-loving, textural plantings appropriate for the space. Irrigation keeps everything well-watered, and gingko-leaf-themed landscape lighting fixtures lend a soft glow throughout the garden.
The result was an innovative execution which met the Before & After production schedule and garnered CSG an Excellence in Landscape Merit Award from the ILCA.
