Hively Landscapes
A Patio with a View

A Patio With A View
A situation I run into often, is a home owner that gets tired of their old decaying wooden deck and are looking for something more permanent. I wanted to change the entire dynamics of this outdoor living space. Taking out the deck and installing a level patio will get their view below the two large out trees that are located directly off the patio. Dropping the patio to level with grade allowed me to design a large comfortable landing to come out of the kitchen doors with a food platter or drinks.

Luckily the home owner wanted natural stone which fits this property perfectly. All the wood in the home and no siding along with the view of the pond and woods all around really gives this property a rustic feel which craves natural stone. The colors in the pattern cut flagstone really bring life to the space will keeping some formality as opposed to using an irregular flagstone.

The balance of the PA fieldstone walls dry staked and double sided adds character and functionality in many ways. The wall by the sunken hot tub provides great seating at eye level with the participants inside the tub. This also works well as an entrance point. The parts of the walls that parallel the house were designed without any landscaping against them to allow the home owners and guests to be able to sit on the wall facing the amazing view of the pond.

All the hard lines in the patio and walls are broken up with a soft arch and curved edge between the house and landscape bed. The Crape Myrtle in that bed creates a great buffer between the architecture in the home and the stonework in the patio. As the Crape Myrtle grows, the lower limbs will be removed to maintain the open view of the pond and patio area from the inside.

Large thermal rock faced bluestone caps and step treads put the icing on the cake. This creates a great tie with the flagstone as well as allows for comfortable seating and steps in to the home. The area that was once an old rotting deck is now a natural paradise to relax and enjoy the sights and sounds of nature.