We design landscape solutions that enhance your property's aesthetics and value and enrich your lifestyle

Summers in Toronto are precious. After thawing out from our annual deep freeze we love to get outdoors. If it's March 3 and the mercury shows 13° we head out in our shorts and tees—restaurants and cafes dust off their patio chairs and we join the annual migration back out into the fresh air. Yes, we are a little nuts about summer in this part of the world. We cherish the return of the sun in a way few might understand who hail from warmer climes.

At home, that means heading out to the back deck, getting the barbecue cleaned up and fired up, spicing up the burgers, and supping on our favorite beer.

If you don’t as yet have a deck, have a look at some of the great decks* shown below. Can’t you almost hear the sizzle of the barbecue, smell the fresh mown lawn and feel the warm breeze on your face?

Summer’s** back at last. Hooray! 

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What do they say about first impressions—you only have one chance to make a good one?

Realtors know this all too well when they talk to their sellers about curb appeal. Why wait until you are ready to sell to create a wonderful first impression and great curb appeal? And, it doesn't always have to take major landscaping work. By simply adding some flower urns around your front entrance you can add colour and make your entrance more appealing and more inviting.

Below is a selection of urns we have added to various client projects. Although the pictures were taken at different stages imagine all of the urns over-flowing with beautiful colourful flowers. Then imagine them at the front of your home. 

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I've mentioned before that one of the fun things about being a landscape designer is the opportunity to discover interesting new products that we can incorporate into our designs. Well, here's another one. We just got contacted by Rockscapes of Canada Inc. and what they are doing looks pretty interesting. We haven't actually used their products yet so this isn't a testimonial. That said, we're pretty impressed with what we see. They are doing some pretty interesting things with faux rock designs for residential landscaping so we wanted to share this with you—if for no other reason than to fire up your imagination.

We think what they are doing falls under the "if you can conceive it we can achieve it" category. They use their faux rock in such things as…

• realistic looking rock formations
• natural stone waterfalls 
• natural looking rock grottoes
• slate floor tiles
• stone stairways
• rock gardens
• rooftop gardens
• retaining walls

it looks like these guys can do just about anything that you can imagine. And, that means that we can design it into our client's landscaping solutions.

Here are some examples of their work. 

All pictures have been provided to us courtesy of Rockscapes of Canada Inc. and are used with their permission. A special thanks to Mr. Padraic Mangan for his assistance in providing information and photos about their products. Please check out their web site at: www.rockscapescanada.com. They show many more examples and also talk about how they make their products. It's pretty interesting so take a look.

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• creatively using arbors in your outdoor space 
• adding water features
• outdoor lighting you may not expect

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"Great Ideas for Landscaping Small Yards" was originaly published on the East End Toronto Homes Blog on March 25th, 2011 and was written by Toronto Real Estate Agent John Helfrich who was our client.  

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Landscaping small yards increases usable space, enjoyment & value

Why did we wait so long? It was a no-brainer, really. Just finish off the back yard and start using the badly needed outdoor space for relaxing and entertaining.

The problem(s)?

We lacked the spatial sense & design-savvy for landscaping small yards. We had 1000 sq.ft. of wants and needs to fit into our 500 sq. ft back yard. “You’ll have to take something off the list” we were told repeatedly. Of course this created a tug-of-war with my wife and I each defending our pet projects. So how do you deal with all this? How do you make the right decisions?

Start with a ‘spatial reality check’ when landscaping small yards

When you’re landscaping small yards, you usually start with a ‘big yard’ wish list. We wanted a storage shed for 4 bikes, seating for 6, a water feature, an 0utdoor kitchen area with a barbeque, bar and 6 stools, plus ‘green space’ and a motorized sun-canopy that would shade most of the back yard. I should have mentioned we only have 20 by 25 feet.

Why Landscaping Small Yards Often Requires a Professional Designer

Think of it like this. Getting all, or even most of the features you want in your small space, with a great look and function, is like trying to fit a desktop computer into a cell phone. It can be done, but not by your average homeowner.

Kudos to Designer/Landscaper Keith Evans – Owner of Land Effects Outdoor Living Spaces Ltd.

Keith helped us prioritize and  pare back our list of ‘must haves’, until the features fit into our space with a shoe-horn. He polished the design with a few aesthetic concepts we’d never considered.

When finished, Keith submitted our project to Landscape Ontario and won the Award of Excellence for small spaces – residential construction. (not to mention our heartfelt endorsement!).

The Problems

Our back yard is surrounded by 2 garages and the brick wall of our neighbours home. We hated the view looking  outside from our family room. Because we’re surrounded by structures, there’s nowhere for the water to run off. (which usually means a wet basement for someone) There wasn’t enough room in our 20 x 25 foot space for the outdoor kitchen area and bar. The shade canopy needed support posts which ruined the sight lines from inside to outside.This is how our problem was fixed….

Solution -The View

Building an attractive cedar fence as high as the code would allow, hid most of the ugly features around us.

Because of it’s size, Keith ran the fence-boards in 2 directions, which made it less imposing. But we still saw too much of the brick wall.

Keith suggested making our water feature the focal point, which would draw the eye down, away from the brick. He used a natural stone to surround the fountain, then tied in the stone as a band that ran all the way around the fence line – again, drawing the eye away from the brick wall. On either side of the water feature he used chunky cedar lattice behind a garden, to lighten the overall effect.

Solution – Water Run Off

A common problem with landscaping small yards is managing water run-off. Keith used what’s called a ‘French drain’ which is simply a deep hole, lined with landscape fabric and filled with large gravel. The grade is sloped towards a collector drain and water is led into the pit where it ‘percolates’ down through our sandy soil. Problem solved.

Solution – Outdoor Kitchen and Canopy

Keith patiently led us through the prioritizing process until we realized there just wasn’t room for a real kitchen counter and a bar with seating. But we did manage to keep our large Barbeque and we bought a portable bar and a few stools to create a bit more seating for guests.
As for the shade canopy, well we’re still working on that.
The original product needed structural supports which killed the sight-lines from inside. We’re now looking at super thin shade fabric that can hang from overhead wires or cables stretched from one end of the yard to the other.

The Results

Was it really affordable? Once we gave up the outdoor kitchen and motorized shade structure, I suppose it was.

As a Realtor, I’d estimate we recovered at least half of the cost in increased property value. We’ve expanded our living space considerably. It’s almost like having an extra room, but outdoors. We use the space almost every day (and night), have meals outside, and enjoy having friends over to our otherwise-small house. No regrets!

Thank You To Keith Evans – Owner of Land Effects Outdoor Living Spaces Ltd.

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