Some landscapes call for a light touch—an approach that doesn’t impose but instead listens, responds, and evolves. Jones Road is one of those places. Perched along a ridgeline with uninterrupted views of pastures, woodlands, and a winding creek, this rural property demanded a garden that would feel of the landscape, not separate from it.

The clients first encountered our work at the Bank of Springfield, where they saw how naturalistic plantings could transform a space. Inspired by that experience, they reached out to create a garden that felt equally immersive—one that embraced both ecological function and aesthetic refinement.

The site, at first, was mostly open turf with a handful of trees and a pool bordered by poured concrete. The land dropped sharply behind the house, creating a sense of disconnect between the residence and the surrounding topography. Rather than working against this challenge, we embraced it. In a bold move, an entire hillside was regraded, sculpting the terrain to accommodate expansive new plantings. This not only improved the garden’s aesthetics but also its functionality, creating a seamless transition between the built and natural environments.

The resulting landscape spans nearly 20,000 square feet, blurring the lines between the cultivated and the untamed. Designed to invite movement and discovery, the garden provides an ever-changing display of color, texture, and seasonal interest. Pollinators, birds, and other wildlife animate the space, transforming it into a living, breathing extension of the land.

At the core of the design is a matrix-based planting scheme, where grasses form the foundation—a dynamic, shifting canvas through which perennials, shrubs, natives, and bulbs emerge in waves. The early compositions leaned into structured, block-style plantings, taking cues from bold seasonal arrangements before evolving into a more layered, interwoven design—one that continues to adapt over time.

Rather than static drifts, the plantings function as a self-sustaining system. Groundcovers suppress weeds, mid-height perennials provide seasonal texture, and taller structural plants add movement and verticality. The result is a garden that is both visually compelling and ecologically attuned.

The client later described the process as watching a painter at work, each plant a stroke on a canvas. "I have watched from an upstairs window as Adam moves through the garden, unaware he’s being observed," she said. "He is holding out his hand and scanning across the landscape, and you can just see him thinking, ‘We need this color here and that color there.’ We let him go, and he has created exactly what we wanted."

To further enrich the garden’s atmosphere, bronze and brass sculptures were introduced, their patinaed forms emerging among the grasses like figures in a landscape painting. These pieces provide year-round focal points, catching the shifting light and adding a touch of whimsy while reinforcing the garden’s sense of presence.

Jones Road represents an evolution in our practice—an exploration of how design can create a conversation between land and structure, between nature and the built environment. More than just a collection of plants, this is a garden designed to be felt, experienced, and lived in. It is a landscape that changes with the seasons, adapts over time, and ultimately belongs to the place itself.

Before & In Process Photos