Many landscape contractors incorporate decorative concrete into their projects, as homeowners and businesses want durable, long-lasting hardscapes that are largely maintenance free. The concrete covering the upper areas and pool deck of this Cassville, Mo., residence was imprinted with hand-cut stone imprinting tools, colored with an oyster white hardener and pecan tan antiquing release, highlighted with various color hardener pigments and grouted to match the home's existing stones.

The owner of this Rogers, Ark., residence wanted a concrete hardscape that would complement the brick facade of their French country home and pool house. Ozark Patterned Concrete installed a veranda for the pool house, imprinted it with Old English herringbone brick imprinting tools, then grouted it to match the brick of the pool house and accents on the home. An inlay was scored and dyed to create a permanent floor covering for the entryway.

The 495 square feet of concrete decking at this Bentonville, Ark., residence was formed, placed and finished in just two days. The edges of the imprinted concrete were faced with an "end grain" texture mat to continue the project's woody appearance.

Decorative concrete can provide colorful outdoor living spaces that require minimal maintenance. Concrete has been used in various applications for hundreds of years, and is a go-to product for hardscape additions to residential, commercial and industrial projects.

Today's landscape professionals meet client needs with outdoor living amenities like hot tubs, cabanas, pools, ponds and outdoor kitchens. Many add decorative concrete into their projects, but it takes a trained eye to develop a hardscape that will blend with and enhance an installation.

Over the past few decades, concrete has become popular in projects where environmental considerations are a major focus. Concrete is free of volatile organic compounds (VOC), making it a good choice for those who suffer from allergies to carpet or tile glue. A concrete professional can craft an expansive range of surfacing styles from the homeowner or architect's vision. The following projects demonstrate that versatility.

Decked Out in Missouri
The pool deck and upper level of a Cassville, Mo., backyard was imprinted with hand-cut stone tools over an eight-week period by Ozark Patterned Concrete, an installer based in Lowell, Ark. Most of the 6,772-square-foot project was colored with an oyster white color hardener (LM Scofield) and a pecan tan antiquing release (Lithochrome), highlighted with color hardener pigments and grouted to match the existing stone on site. The borders and walkway under the mining track used a russet color hardener to match the flooring inside the home. The intersections of the borders and the centerpiece are tracings of the ranch's branding iron, enlarged and installed using Modello stencils, with Spanish tile and black Tintura stains. The perimeter borders were imprinted and colored to match the rock cliff features with a stone gray color hardener and a charcoal antiquing release.

A random fieldstone design was imprinted on this pool deck and outdoor living area, with bands and borders of beige and walnut colors that were aged with an antiquing release agent. The deck totaled 2,850 square feet, and the grout was formed with architectural saw cuts in a diamond layout. The concrete was specified at 32 megapascals with six percent air entrainment (Patterned Concrete). The pool deck was re-designed to support the structural installation of the concrete, reinforcing the placement of the saw cuts for expansion purposes. The pool was edged with a natural stone coping.

Besting Brick in Arkansas
A homeowner in Rogers, Ark., was interested in a new hardscape to complement the brick pool house and brick accent facade of their French country home.

Over nine weeks of construction, OPC used Fortress Stone imprinting tools to create a cut-stone look for the pool deck. The pool house veranda (pictured, previous page) was imprinted with Old English herringbone brick imprinting tools, and grouted to match the brick on the pool house and accents on the home. The rose inlay in the pool house veranda was scored and dyed to create a permanent "rug" for the entryway. The steps and sidewalks were imprinted with a rock texture and bordered by an imprinted brick pattern, which was grouted and colored to match the veranda and pool deck. Guest parking was imprinted with the same brick pattern and connected to the colored, broom-finished drive, and bordered with rock texture.

The coarse aggregate concrete mix (Central Redi-Mix) was placed on a three-inch minimum Class 7 compacted base, and reinforced with #3 rebar at 24-inch centers. The pool deck, stone sidewalks and borders were flash highlighted with acid stain (Kemico). The parking area and sidewalk borders were colored with a Concreation, Inc., color hardener and release. "Give an artist a brush, and they will implement a vision and create art," said Joe Guida, president of Patterned Concrete Industries Ltd., Toronto. "Give a trained concrete professional an opportunity, and watch an art form be created in concrete."