Home & Design
Wall - Fence
Wall - Fence

A stone wall conceals the driveway from the pool area.

Patio - Table
Patio - Table

The owners entertain on the large flagstone patio that flanks the pool.

Landscape - Landscape design
Landscape - Landscape design

Thanks to the outdoor fireplace, the family enjoys their garden year-round.

Flowering plant - Tree
Flowering plant - Tree

Black-eyed Susans complement this waterside setting.

Table - Couch
Table - Couch

Seating by the vanishing edge pool provides an unimpeded view of the Rhode River.

The Great Outdoors River View

Walnut Hill creates a landscape that takes full advantage of its waterfront locale

Great Outdoors River View When Michael Prokopchak of Walnut Hill Landscape Company took on this project in Edgewater, Maryland, he was given a firm five-month deadline. The owners, whose children had grown up in the home, needed their landscape transformed in time for their adult son’s surprise party. 

The task was a daunting one that began with opening up the kitchen to views of the neighboring Rhode River. What was once a limited view of the yard is now a broad vista that encompasses a new pool with a dramatic vanishing edge. Prokopchak and his team had to remove several large trees to reveal the view, but were able to leave an existing locust tree that now seems to magically rise from the water below.

The clients also wanted outdoor spaces in which to entertain. Prokopchak found a secluded space for a large flagstone patio, cleverly concealing the nearby driveway with a four-foot stone wall. The family uses the patio year-round thanks to a large stone fireplace that also disguises the pool equipment. A row of Leyland cypress provides privacy. Banks of Shasta daisies soften the stone in the warmer months. Sweeping drifts of Oriental fountain grass, black-eyed Susans and crape myrtles envelop the hardscape. 

Karen Watkins is a freelance writer based in Bethesda, Maryland.

AWARD: GRAND AWARDOutdoor Living Area (Design/Build). LANDSCAPE DESIGN: MICHAEL PROKOPCHAK, Walnut Hill Landscape Company, Annapolis, Maryland. PHOTOGRAPHY: MICHAEL PROKOPCHAK.

You may also like:

Savvy Solution
D.A. Dunlevy turns a challenging lot into an inviting, private retreat
Al Fresco Style
Informal on a Grand Scale
Surrounds Landscape Architecture + Construction, Sterling, Virginia;
Grand Award, Outdoor Living Area (Design/Build)
HOME&DESIGN, published bi-monthly by Homestyles Media Inc., is the premier magazine of architecture and fine interiors for the Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia region.

The company also publishes an annual H&D Sourcebook of ideas and resources for homeowners and professionals alike. H&D Chesapeake Views is published bi-annually and showcases fine home design and luxury living in and around the Chesapeake Bay.

The H&D Portfolio of 100 Top Designers spotlights the superior work of selected architects, interior designers and landscape architects in major regions of the US.

Stay Connected with HOME & DESIGN Newsletter

Copyright © 2025 Home & Design. All rights reserved. | Back to top
magnifier