Lots of progress

Yard all cleaned up with the 60-year old hedge, fence, and shed all gone.

Laying out where things will go.

Digging the footings for the stone wall that will deal with the grade change
from the back of the yard to the back of the house.

The footings for the lily pond being put into place.

The gravel roughly lays out where the terrace, paths, and wall will go.

Nellie Stevens holly bushes installed along the driveway. Over time they will naturalize and look less like Christmas trees.
We wanted something that would provide screening and also be good habitat for birds.

Our giant pieces of granite arrived from Massachusetts. As I mentioned before, it is from an old barn
and was quarried prior to 1880. One piece was over 10 feet long which
is pretty unusual for reclaimed stone.

View from the second floor deck showing new magnolia on the left, the pleached hornbeams in the back,
and the poured concrete lily pond under the black tarp. You can also see some
of the stones that have been brought in to start making the wall.

And from a little stone to a lot of stone. Lots more irregular pieces brought in for the wall.
Bluestone pavers for the terrace. You can also see the stone wall taking shape
and the granite steps in the background.

Reclaimed granite cobbles for a smaller terrace that will have a large copper flower urn on it. 

The chipmunks love the pile of rocks.

 

Here you can see how great the monolithic pieces of granite look in place.

Those three big blocks of reclaimed granite will be used for a landing stoop outside the carriage house doors.

Our stone mason Rob Page does a great job finding the right weathered rocks for the right spots.

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The stone mess from another angle. Photo taken from the upper level at the back of the yard.
There will be a 7-foot privacy fence behind the arborvitae.

DeGroot's Spire Arborvitae in place along what will be the fence line.

One of the many neighborhood chipmunks.

The unfinished lily pond seen through the pleached hornbeams.

 

The birds love all of the upturned earth.

Another visitor

 

We've seen foxes quite a bit this year. Not sure if we keep seeing the same one or not.
I wish I had gotten a picture of the one I saw climbing over the 7-foot wood fence at the back of the property.

Lucy has one spot on the screened porch that isn't covered up by the temporary protective boards.

Keeping an eye on critters.

During the rain delay...

Not much happened in the yard last week except rain. Lots and lots of rain. I offered to send our portion to Alberta to help put out the wildfires there but Mother Nature didn't seem interested. Our landscaper/stone mason took the opportunity to go to the sunny shores of Massachusetts to source some granite slabs for the steps that will lead up to the pond at the back of the yard.

From what we are told it is Cape Ann granite that was part of an old barn and quarried prior to 1880. Can't wait to see it on site.