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Ponds & water features

Bubbling rocks, a stone patio and somewhere to sit and watch them

A bubbling boulder water feature set among planting and stonePonds & water features
Published
Location
Central Pennsylvania
Site size
Scope
Hardscaping, Ponds & water features, Outdoor lighting

Completed

The owners left the water design to us, which is both the nicest brief to get and the one that carries the most responsibility.

Not every garden wants a pond. Bubbling rocks and fountains give you the sound of moving water and the wildlife that comes with it, with no open water to maintain and nothing to shut down in the same way each autumn.

The approach

Water is the reason people sit outside longer than they meant to. So the feature and the place you watch it from have to be designed as one thing: get them right and the patio becomes the room the house did not have.

What we built

Bubbling rocks and large overflowing vases with a continuous flow of water. Alongside them, a stone patio, a retaining wall and a fire pit, positioned to face the water. Then the planting: shrubs, boulders, driftwood and a specimen tree lit from below, which is what ties a scheme like this together once the light goes.

Our solid brass LED low-voltage fixtures carry a lifetime warranty, no questions asked, which matters on uplighting that spends its whole life outdoors.

The result

An addition to an existing outdoor cooking pavilion that gave the family a reason to use it after dark, and the tranquil feel they asked for.

A paver patio with a central fire pit and seating
A paver patio with a central fire pit and seating
A stepped stone runnel carrying a thin sheet of water between planted terraces
Water moving through the finished terraces
A restored freshwater wetland with open water braided through stands of bulrush and sedge
From the client
“We left it to the professionals to design our water scape. The bubbling rocks and large overflowing vases with continuous flow of water give a tranquil feel. The new stone patio, retaining wall and fire pit is an inviting place to sit and relax while watching the water. The plants, driftwood, bushes, boulders and decorative tree with up lights bring it all together. We love it!”
Colleen Deleo
Elena Braithwaite, founding principal
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