Bearman Renovation
A dreary front yard is transformed into a delightful and nature-filled courtyard

The owners were not happy with their exterior front entry.  The existing entry had a sunken gravel pit which collected heat in the summer, effectively killing most of the plants.

Also, there was an unattractive view of the gravel parking from the front of the house.

It was gravel on top of more gravel.

My solution was to create an entry courtyard.  We removed the gravel in the sunken area and added a bamboo screening fence to hide the view of the parking area from the new courtyard.  We removed the sunken pit by making a raised boardwalk entry.  This removes the two sets of steps, aka tripping hazards, and adds a lot of safety to the entry.  The boardwalk bisects two small ponds with recirculating water.  Mostly tough native plants were installed.

Within two days, the pond had a chorus of frogs living there.

Two water turtles have now made it their own along with dragonflies and many other animals.

The owners say it has completely changed how they live.  Now they seek out the front courtyard to spend time there, rather than just a space to move through.