Horn & Co. is a landscape architecture and horticultural firm in the Washington, D.C. area that specializes in the design and implementation of high-end residential and commercial gardens throughout Virginia, Maryland, Washington, D.C., Delaware, and New York. They work closely with architects, ensuring that their landscapes reflect the spirit of a home's design and offer a unique interpretation of the terrain. The seven-person team, led by Founding Principal Jennifer Horn, PLA, composes garden spaces that thrive throughout the year with beauty and grace. This involves always considering a garden's temporal flow, its adaptability to a client's changing needs, and how both elements will affect the clients and the natural world. They vigilantly adhere to the guiding principle that a landscape should respond to its adjacent architecture and its social and natural histories. The firm calculates its annual carbon footprint and offsets their use of electricity and fossil fuels through TerraPass, whose programs help reduce greenhouse gases, support clean energy, and restore
freshwater ecosystems.
Software used: Adobe Creative Suite, SketchUp, AutoCAD, Lumion

House on Willow Hill,
Vienna, Virginia

 

A: The House on Willow Hill is a five-acre site with a 19th-century log cabin next to a 1980s single-family home. The greatest challenge was thoughtfully connecting the 200-year-old building with modern living. The team casually laid irregular bluestone pavers on the cabin terrace. Original farm millstones were repurposed into water elements and paving details. The vegetable garden, dining, and pool terraces tie into the modern house with stucco, bluestone, and more formal detailing. The plant palette includes a mix of natives and heirloom species. House on Willow Hill received a Virginia ASLA Merit Award (2023) and a Potomac ASLA Merit Award (2024).

Embassy Row,
Washington, D.C.

B: The Beaux Arts architecture of the Embassy Road home served as inspiration for all landscape design choices, with the goal of designing an exterior that compliments the home's traditional elements and more modern additions. Horn & Co. divided the plan into three rooms. A water feature brings a soothing sound to the entire yard. The dining space inhabits the middle section, surrounded by a hedge and a paneled privacy fence. The final section is a more casual seating area with a fire pit and Delaware Valley gravel. A Chippendale-style gate provides a more porous view of the woods beyond. Embassy Row received an APLD Gold Award in 2023.

Color Field Landscape, Bethesda, Maryland

C: The concept for Color Field Landscape comes from the architectural gesture of two contemporary, semicircular additions on an otherwise traditional house. Concentric circles create various 'rings' partitioned into sections by rays that emanate from the center point. The residence sits on a hill, and as such, the concept of offset rings is also explored in elevation - a curved wall not only divides the space, but also serves to terrace the property. A water feature is loud enough that its relaxing babble can be heard inside without deafining conversation outside. The planting design creates a feeling of being saturated in color and texture. Color Field Landscape received an APLD Gold Award in 2020.

Bethesda Modern Classic, Bethesda, Maryland

D: This project emphasizes the elevational and aesthetic separation between the designed space and the wooded park beyond by creating a minimal landscape. A rear retaining wall terrace allows for paved spaces, a play lawn for small children, and a pool. Below, arborvitae are hedged to the height of the guardrail, creating a green datum line. Silva Cells in the courtyard gives trees access to soil, drainage, and aeration, which also provides adequate pitch for drainage. To preserve a large, 50-year-old weeping cherry tree, cantilevered grade beams were specified, eliminating the need for destructive trenching and preserving as much root zone as possible. Bethesda Modern Classic received a Maryland ASLA Merit Award (2024).