Once upon a time, proud homeowners carefully mowed their lawns, weeded their flower beds and fertilized their trees. They were content with a crisp, albeit somewhat sterile landcape. After a busy work week, the lawn chores consumed much of their time on weekends, leaving little time to spend grooming elaborate gardens. Landscapes today have transitioned into stellar, inspiring designs. Homes are bigger, lawn and gardens are smaller, but more extravagant and decorative. Landscape architects are hired to create a stunning residential design, and professional contractors are hired to bring the dream to life. Sprinkler systems assure lawns are watered regularly, while crews are hired to keep it all mowed, edged and pruned. ?EUR??,,????'??A beautiful landscape design is a mixture of different plants and stone native to the local environment,?EUR??,,????'?? said Pat Conners, owner of Tetrus Building Materials in Reno, Nevada. ?EUR??,,????'??Hardscapes and softscapes work together in creating a beautiful landscape in much the same way that they do in the natural environment. They create a combination of color and texture that are designed to flow naturally, complementing each other. Tumbled pave stones and retaining walls provide a look that closely replicates natural stone, but with added durability of concrete.?EUR??,,????'?? One of the first considerations that should be determined in designing a luxurious residential landscape is form or function or a combination of both? For some homeowners, the design intent is simply to create a beautiful showplace. For others, it?EUR??,,????'???s a livable dreamscape that incorporates swimming pools, gardens, play areas, fountains and barbecue patios into a harmonious design that looks as if it were carved out of its natural environment. It?EUR??,,????'???s the attention to design detail and the presentation of the unexpected that delivers the extraordinary...a decorative pave stone walkway circling a fountain in a gated courtyard entrance, a poolside fire pit on a patio overlooking a cascading waterfall, a decorative planter area that breaks up a long and winding driveway. ?EUR??,,????'??Dull gray concrete will never be anything more than dull gray concrete, except maybe it will deteriorate further by cracking and staining,?EUR??,,????'?? said Mory Gholami, owner of Value Nursery & Landscape Supply Yard in Silver Spring, Maryland. ?EUR??,,????'??Selecting the appropriate color and texture of pave stones and walls for landscape designs is as important as selecting the right plants and shrubs. The design goal should be to complement the home with the pave stones and walls. Then, let the plants accentuate color and vertical height variances. It?EUR??,,????'???s important to remember mature growth height to ensure that the plants that will grow to the tallest heights will be planted behind all shorter plants. Other considerations for plant placement include the condition of the soil and the location for optimum overall beauty. Paving stones and segmental retaining walls present a more attractive alternative to asphalt, concrete and railroad ties. In the last couple of years, the Northeast has experienced some bad droughts. The low maintenance, or in some cases no maintenance, of pave stone patios has really made the popularity of these products take off. And they just look outstanding.?EUR??,,????'?? James Wright of Pavestone Company in Hagerstown, Maryland agrees. ?EUR??,,????'??With a proper installation, patios, driveways, and walkways continue to showcase their beauty year after year with no maintenance,?EUR??,,????'?? he said. ?EUR??,,????'??Railroad timber rots, attracting unpleasant insects and bugs. Metal rusts and presents a safety hazard. Poured concrete cracks with extreme weather changes and stains easily. Many homes today are built on lots that slope. Segmental retaining walls can actually increase property size, appearance and the overall value of a home.?EUR??,,????'?? ?EUR??,,????'??In a day where time is a valued commodity, construction time is minimized when concrete pave stones and retaining walls are used,?EUR??,,????'?? said Robert Parker, Pavestone Company, Dallas, Texas. ?EUR??,,????'?? In fact, they can be used the same day they are installed, as there is no cure time required. Natural stone set with mortar and poured concrete all require adequate cure time. ?EUR??,,????'??Today?EUR??,,????'???s homeowner will most likely sell and buy several homes in their lifetime.?EUR??,,????'?? Parker added that replacing a boring driveway with a beautiful one made of pave stones in blended colors, provides a home with the added appeal that sets it apart from the rest. ?EUR??,,????'??Due to the segmental nature of paving stones, they distribute the load better than other pavements, while staying serviceable with expanding soils and freeze-thaw conditions,?EUR??,,????'?? he said. ?EUR??,,????'??The combination of durability and beauty enhancing attributes can increase the value of a home by up to 15 percent, which makes it a fantastic investment.?EUR??,,????'?? With the vast array of available options on the market today for pavements and retaining walls systems, homeowners are truly limited only by their imagination in landscape designs. A Minnesota family, proud of their Austrian heritage, sought to create an alpine mountain freshness at their suburban home. The original landscape design was a typical backyard of grass, a few trees, small deck and concrete patio. The transformation required a few existing items to first be removed. Plants were added to the existing trees, as were decorative pave stones for walkway and patio areas, a water feature and three retaining walls. The backyard was expertly transformed into a mountain hideaway. Two of the three walls are 35 feet and flank a set of stairs. The third wall added is 30 feet. When the wall elevations were prepared, the contractor designed the layout so that swales were created to collect and channel rainwater runoff on the property. The Anchor Highland Stone in a natural earth tone blend was selected to accommodate the change in grade and its ability to blend with the trap rock on the water feature. ?EUR??,,????'??The retaining walls were built with a soft radius and were designed to hold up the water feature and patio,?EUR??,,????'?? explained Lynn Barnhart, marketing manger for Anchor Wall Systems. ?EUR??,,????'??Enough distance was allowed between the pond wall and the retaining wall to hold the load without using reinforcement grid. The resulting fish pond is 30 by 22 foot, lined with a 45 mm., fish safe EPBDM rubber, and is four feet deep. Once the walls and pond were in place, a patio was built using pave stones. The 400-square foot patio design included a circular pattern in the sitting area bordering a herringbone pattern for a beautiful transition.?EUR??,,????'?? To complete the alpine theme, the contractor took the family to a wholesale nursery to choose the plants. The goal was to find smaller, low-growing plants that flower in crevices of a rocky mountainside. The selection included silver maple, pussy willow, lilacs, a Walker weeping tea shrub and a birch clump by the pond skimmer for shade. The homeowners worked closely with the contractor in bringing their dream to life. Completed in the summer of 2002, the homeowner?EUR??,,????'???s response was elation. With tears in her eyes, she stated it was even more beautiful than she had imagined. Today?EUR??,,????'???s contractors bring dreams to life with affordable and imaginative residential landscape designs.