Project of the Month: Eco-friendly beauty

The focus of this coastal New York property's redesign was to treat the residence as sculpture. The newly constructed residence was technologically and ecologically “smart,” and the client wanted the landscape to follow that standard. The front yard was regarded before adding transplants and new vegetation, and silt fencing was established to maintain existing shore slope before replanting during construction.

A paver and granite driveway leads past the front lawn, which features large Zelkova trees and transplanted Kwanzan cherry trees. The driveway’s light color results in low albedo and less heat absorption.

Transplants, such as this dogwood, and new planting create colorful layers within the redesigned beds. Cranes were used to transplant the largest trees.

Plantings approved by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation compliment the bulkhead on the lawn’s shoreline edge, while retaining the slope and preventing shore erosion.

The bed adjacent to the entrance creates an important drainage area, with the low point collecting runoff from the lawn and driveway, complete with water-tolerant plantings such as Carex.