While most of the garden rooms of this Little Rock, Arkansas estate are contained within silver-mist cut stonewalls, the 12' tall and 12' grotto is constructed of 10 tons of Ozark fieldstone sourced from Stone County, Ark. The fieldstone is capped with Arkansas marble from McBride Quarries in Independence County. Small volumes of water are piped through a hidden manifold to replicate spring waters dripping through rock crevices. The bright green mosses and lichens add verisimilitude. The pool basin has a biological filter to purify the water without the use of chemicals. Koi inhabit the pool. Plants in this garden include "Weeping' Katsura Chinese stewartia, white flowering redbuds, climbing hydrangea, "Fullmoon' maples and Camellia sasanqua. The planting beds have 18"-30" of custom blended soil, and an extensive subsurface drainage system. A Saint Augustine lawn completes the contemplative intimate enclosure.

The inspirations for this project were the Art's and Crafts gardens of Great Britain, and the natural Ozarks settings. The garden begins near the house in a formal manner and progresses to an informal, naturalistic environment as you move away from the home. The gardens are a series of seven small to large walled garden rooms with four different water features that provide focal points throughout the garden.

The landscape architect was intimately involved for four years with all aspects of these unusual gardens, from master planning through final construction, producing all documentation and being involved daily in the management of all construction activities. Many hours were spent in the field searching for stone that met the design expectations, and overseeing the extraction, transportation and placement of the boulders. Quarried stone came from three quarries in Arkansas and Oklahoma; natural fieldstone was imported from several Arkansas counties.

The Cascades originate from a quartzite stone grotto (sourced in Garland County) and tumble down 25 feet of gradient into two boulder-lined swimming pools. The fountain equipment (Fountain People) is housed in a buried fiberglass vault. Over 200 tons of sandstone boulders were sourced from rural Van Buren County to create this naturalistic stream. Accent plants for the falls are several cultivars of False cypress, Japanese maple, red buckeye and "Weeping Blue Atlas' cedar.

Each garden has its own character and horticultural diversity. The formal portion of the garden has an elliptical computer-controlled display fountain that choreographs the sprays and lighting effects. Garden features include the main patio of cut stone balustrades and paving; the great lawn; the grotto garden and koi pond; the terraced courtyard gardens; cut flowers and herb garden; the woodland garden; the cascades; and the spa and swimming pools. There's also extensive lighting, irrigation, subsurface drainage and decorative hand-forged stainless steel panels. The planting design was completed on site from the diverse plants brought in from around the U.S. Many of the trees were in excess of 6" caliper and 20-25 feet tall.

The first space one encounters entering the garden from the home is the raised patio. It is constructed of cut flagstone and carved stone balustrades. The patio overlooks a grand lawn and sunken garden at the back of the space and is framed by two magnificent "Natchez' crape myrtles. The lawn is enclosed by quarried stonewalls with portals that offer views to other gardens.

The focal point from the back patio is the sunken oval fountain. The walls are quarried sandstone from Sallisaw, Oklahoma; the pool is finished in black "Pebblestone.' The water feature was designed to operate at two levels, a wading pool (when the kids were young), and as a display fountain illuminated by 21 lights. White flowering "Natchez' crape myrtles frame the wide cut stone stairs and fountain. The zoysia lawn decorates the fountain surrounds. The large arched portico (bottom right photo) gives visitors a glimpse into the intimate sunken garden.

Extensive landscape borders edged in thin native fieldstone surround the beautifully manicured zoysia lawn. The garden beds have cultivars of Japanese maples, hollies, "Little Gem' and "Hasse' magnolias, plus numerous herbaceous perennials, annuals, bulbs and grasses. Descending the broad stairs at the far side of the grand lawn one enters the sunken garden, the location of the display fountain, which was also used as a wadding pool when the client's children were young. The small washed and smooth black aggregate ("Pebble Tech') provides a smooth and durable finished pool, creating an illusion of depth; the large flagstone edge is in shades of tan and browns. The large arched window in the back provides a seat and a view into the vast garden beyond.

A large arched doorway in one of the walls invites the visitor into the first of several smaller intimate garden rooms. At the bottom of and to the right of the arched stairway is a stunning specimen "Lusterleaf' holly. Across the small patch of lawn in another edged landscape bed is a "Lipan' crape myrtle. Decorative hand-forged stainless steel garden panels separate the room from the adjoining courtyard.

The upper pool is in the middle of the Cascades. A custom green/gray "PebbleStone' finish was mixed on site to complement the natural moss and lichen of the sandstone boulders. The custom crafted spa is partially built into a cave created by native Ozark boulders. Commercial-grade heaters allow the pools to be quickly heated in the coldest winter weather. Surrounding the "swimming hole" are multiple patios at different levels. Standing on the lower patio looking up to the waters' origin is a 25 foot difference in elevation. Large blue and green "Atlas' cedars create a backdrop for the dramatic pool. A "Bloodgood' Japanese maple and "Weeping Blue Atlas' cedar comprise the foreground plantings.

Upon entering the first courtyard the visitor wanders left into the Grotto Garden, a 12' tall and 12' wide dripping stonewall. The waters trickle into a pool basin inhabited by koi. Weeping Katsura, Chinese stewartia, white flowering redbud, climbing hydrangea, "Fullmoon' maples and Camellia sasanqua proliferate. The enclosure is an intimate and contemplative space to experience. The most naturalistic of the gardens is the swimming pool and cascades. An arched vaulted waterfall plunges through a series of cascades down a steeply sloping area into two boulder-lined swimming pools. There are multiple patios around this pool at different levels; nearby there is a large hot tub partially built into native Ozark boulders. The Pebble Tech pool finish was custom tinted on site to highlight and complement the natural color of the "brainy" shaped boulders, moss and lichens. A commercial pool heater allows the pools to be heated within a few hours. To the left of the stairs is a rare Franklin tree whose lineage traces to plants discovered and collected in the wild by John Bartram in 1770 (and disappeared in the wild by 1790). Supposedly, all plants in cultivation today are derived from Bartram's original collection. The small fragrant white flowers and beautiful fall foliage make this a plant worthy of any great garden.

Circumnavigating the edge of the pool are native stepping-stones and planting beds. The visitor ascends into the cut flower garden, the last of the walled gardens. Lavender, "Apalachee' crape myrtle and numerous perennials comprise the plant palette for this small garden. Beyond the walls is the naturalistic woodland garden full of cultivars of rhododendron, dogwood, Camellia, hemlock and many other woodland plants.