Front Yard Permaculture Landscape w. Garden Terraces, Natural Stone Masonry|Darien, CT Your perfectly purposeful permaculture theme landscape will be a completely functioning eco habitat designed to conserve resources and fulfill your desire to create a cosmos within a cosmos (a complex orderly self-inclusive system).This high function eco system will act as a model of a pollinator pathway landscape and a carbon net-positive planet rescue mission. Plants staged in the sweeping, organic lines of the new front yard garden beds. Not a minor set of design goals…but our landscapes seek to do nothing less! This Fairfield County, Connecticut property required a front landscape that met specific permaculture objectives, while also creating a functional, beautiful outdoor space that maintains front yard curb appeal. Green Jay Landscape Design was hired to create the design, construct the hardscape and install all garden beds. New natural stone walkways enable ease of circulation and promote daily mindfulness in the garden. Permaculture Design Plan The natural wood fence will enclose, contain and focus your good intentions on producing fruits and flowers throughout the growing season. The landscape planting spilling out and over the fence containment area will integrate your experience to the greater outdoor space afforded by your ample front yard. Step One: new garden beds de-thatched of turf grass on the front slope. This front yard is situated on a slope, whose grade we manipulated to achieve terraced permaculture gardens. We employed a dry-stacked retaining wall and fence (yet to be installed) to enclose the area for the client’s chickens. Yes, this is a permaculture landscape through and through! Step Two: De-compacting the soil before planting and amending ensures aeration — air pockets in the soil that are critical for root development. Permaculture Plant Pallet & Landscape Installation The final permaculture garden features a mix of native edibles and perennials, flowering shrubs, ornamental grasses, and trees for wildlife and pollinators. Although fenced in, the property is still an extension of habitat, part of the Pollinator Pathways network, helping to link larger environments with a map of habitats along otherwise developed corridors. Step Three: incorporate organic compost with biochar, green sand and other soil amendments for the organic garden. All garden beds will be constructed by manual removal of all turfgrass surfaces followed by mechanical decompaction of existing soil to be further amended and enriched by the addition of premium quality high-grade compost and soil amendments, including green sand and biochar. Plants will be inoculated with myco-fungii and beneficial bacteria, organic fertilizer and yucca. Planting beds will be mulched with triple ground dark brown natural hardwood mulch. Step Four: Native plant staging is critical! Designs are often revised in the field based on site conditions. With organic landscapes and organic gardening, it is essential that you foster a strong foundation for your plants to thrive on. This means enriching the soil with organic matter and the accompanying soil microbes that help deliver minerals and nutrients to plants. Compacted soil can also inhibit root development and overall growth; decompaction before planting is an important step to maintain soil structure. Learn more about Cultivating Healthy, Organic Soil w. Microbes on our previous blog. Sample plant palette presentation for the client Permaculture Sample Plant Selections Elderberry *Pawpaw *Hazelnut *NepetaGeraniumFountain GrassBee BalmYarrow *ConeflowerMountain MintSummersweetChokeberryAmelanchier *edible for human consumption Progress on the dry stacked retaining wall that separates and defines the garden terraces. Hardscape, Walkway Circulation Stone was mined on-site at the property to construct the freestanding stone wall that created a level base for the fence. The fence (still to be installed) contains and frames the permaculture garden while functionally enclosing the chickens. The chickens do their part by aerating the soil via pecking and digging for worms, as well as fertilizing the soil through their excrement. Finished dry-stacked stone retaining wall with permaculture gardens on either side. In order to construct the fence and dry-stacked wall, we needed to elevate the grade on the right side of the house. Green Jay Landscape Design also installed a small subsurface button drain to capture stormwater. Fieldstone steps were installed to connect the upper lawn with the lower grades. Fieldstone staircase with river rock border fits a naturalistic landscape design. The unique combinations of pathways will provide practical access for maintenance while encouraging circulation, recreation and relaxation amongst the beneficial wildlife and abundant plant life. Side view of the front yard permaculture garden. We can’t wait to see this garden thrive, produce and give back. Stay tuned for more photos! Contact us about your permaculture or ecological landscape design project – 914-560-6570. We are also available for landscape consulting – see our Eco Consulting page.
