Environmental Retreat

For this Michigan project, Drost Landscape installed 95 tons of rock for this 800 square-foot area. They worked on this section throughout the 12 week long project.

The contractor installed 3,000 square feet of permeable Belgard Terra-Flo pavers for the driveway. It took the company 400 labor hours to prep and install it.

This rendering shows the many different varieties of plant material used, irrigated with a drip/trickle irrigation system. According to the contractor, "The irrigation is monitored throughout the summer and run time is adjusted frequently. During establishment it ran more frequently than year two and on. We are promoting deep root establishment."

After the hardscape was completed, workers planted a host of plant material, including: (A) Buddleia davidii "black night" (B) Bipolemonium "stairway to heaven" (C) Hydrangea paniculata "the swan"

Workers installed 80 tons of UP Ledgestone in the 600 square foot wall with an excavator, chains, straps and good old-fashioned labor.

The company created the reservoir for the waterfalls by building it into the structure of the spa and fireplace. Space was very limited and workers had to optimize every square foot. The pumps for both the spa and the waterfalls were located in a mechanical vault buried on site. The waterfall pump is a 1/2hp Whisperflow, and the spa has a recirculation pump and a jet pump. The fireplace is a gas unit supplied by LP gas and the storage unit is also buried on site.

This access allowed the client to move from the driveway and garage to the boathouse. Workers installed three tons of blue flagstone and one ton of Ledgestone for the walkway steps. The retaining was constructed of small pieces of the UP Ledgestone. To augment the hardscape, they planted hosta, yews, vinca, cornus and geranium softscapes. The project took four workers 10 days to plant.

It took Drost Landscape a day and a half to excavate more than 200 cubic yards of earth to prep the driveway area. The crew included an excavator operator, foreman and two dump truck drivers.

Drost Landscape was challenged to create a usable space from an unusable area with extremely steep slopes in close proximity to a major highway. The contractor had serious design constraints to overcome for this Michigan home, while maintaining an environmentally friendly approach.

In addition to geographical constraints, local ordinances further complicated things. Road and lake setbacks overlapped each other, eliminating the potential for landscape construction.

Throughout a year of township meetings and consultations with local government, the company was granted the variances necessary to design a functioning landscape. Throughout the construction phase, the slopes, adjacent structures and roads, and the site's small footprint presented additional obstacles.

Large excavation pads, temporary steel retaining walls, highway safety and soil erosion measures had to be implemented with the development of the installation in order to make the construction possible. Environmental sensitivity and storm-water runoff were primary concerns of the client, so the patio surfaces were constructed with permeable subgrade material to eliminate the potential for flooding and lake contamination. Green spaces were maximized, even within the patio and walkway surfaces. Planted material was used in patio joints instead of grout or concrete. The driveway was constructed using permeable materials as well.

Features on site include a recirculating stream, fireplace and natural stone hot tub. The meandering stream starts in the upper garden terrace, ultimately disappearing at the base of the gas-burning fireplace. The design and construction of the feature gives the illusion that the stream flows into a small pond, which is actually a hot tub made with natural stone. Without using any prefabricated units, this natural stone hot tub took three months to construct.

The four-season planting design of the site means that something is in bloom regardless of the time of year. An extensive variety of trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals were used, and continue to be maintained on an annual basis. The evergreen screening is multifunctional. Aesthetically, the screen frames views within the site, and blocks views from the abutting highway. It also acts as a wind and sound barrier for the residence.