Ed Ball Landscape Architecture was hired by clients in the Bahamas to design a functional, private garden on a very small lot surrounded by water. Ed Ball and his team were able to create circulation within the diminutive spaces and make them feel bigger than they actually are, while also linking the property to the water via steps down to the dock.

“We used vertical lines in our design and allowed the adjacent properties to expand the views beyond the property lines,” Ball explains. The plant and material palette features ficus, neem trees and coconut palms framing stepping stones and coral stone, textured-concrete steppers. Strips of synthetic lawn and driveway pavers in the driveway add an unexpected layer of visual interest.

Design Features

• The multi-use driveway employs 24-by-24-inch stones punctuated by six-inch-wide strips of synlawn
• The landscape provides easy access to the dock, which holds the owner’s boats and water toys
• Utilities near the water are camouflaged by evergreens
• Plantings include fruit trees, among other fragrant plants

Based in Reston, Virginia, Ed Ball Landscape Architecture has been in business for 11 years. Owner and principal Ed Ball executes 20 to 25 projects per year.

Ed Ball Landscape Architecture
1800 Jonathan Way, Apt. 614, Reston, Virginia 20190
703-433-1863 — edballlandscapearchitecture.com