This client contacted us after moving into a newly constructed home in a rural setting. She’d come from a more urban lifestyle, but as an avid birder, she fell in love with the picturesque setting. Now, her new backyard was adjacent to a highly ecologically diverse wetland at the edge of her property. However, she quickly realized her home was just another house among a series of homogenous grass yards in a housing development. This contributed to a lack of wildlife diversity in the development, driving away the bird species she came to live with. She wanted to do something different and show neighbors that there are other options for a backyard and ways to connect to the surrounding natural beauty.
The house was built a year prior on a heavily sloped lot that heads straight into the wetland, where the moles had seemed to take a liking to the new sod. As a result, we proposed a series of native planting zones of shrubs, grasses, and perennials to act as the property border, with no-mow grass zones closer to the home. This inverse design accentuated the uniqueness of this property and connect the home to the surrounding nature. The design also juxtaposed the neighboring landscapes while offering sublime backdrops to our custom-made fences and the wetland.
While working on this backyard property, we were fortunate to encounter a wide variety of wildlife. We saw many avian species, including Sand Hill Cranes, three species of woodpeckers, pheasants, turkeys, eagles, and owls. Additionally, we witnessed a Sphinx moth, foxes, coyotes, deer, and bear that grace her property.
