“The intent wasn’t to blow up everything. The landscape design didn’t start from scratch, but it looks like it did.”
Phil Kelly
| After a large-scale house renovation, plant material had been dug up and set aside, affecting grading and drainage. What was left of the 1.5-acre landscape no longer matched the architecture of the home. | McHale identified the plantings that were worth keeping and replaced what wasn’t, blending the existing environment with the newer plant material. The unified landscape complements the home’s freshened-up look. |
| An existing pergola by the pool was overwhelmed by wisteria vines; a fairy garden with statuary and eclectic plantings—a relic from a former owner—took up a valuable, shady spot on the property. | Drastically cutting back the pergola’s overgrowth creates a more inviting gathering space with a firepit. The fairy garden is transformed into a lush, three-hole putting green complete with a hammock for lounging. |
| Along the property’s edge, several evergreens were weak or failing, creating a spotty screen and compromising the client’s privacy. | Green Giant arborvitae and hollies fill in the gaps along the border and form a backdrop for a year-round profusion of color that includes native dogwood, redbud, viburnum, hydrangea and crape myrtle. |
Landscape Architecture & Contracting: Phil Kelly, McHale Landscape Design, Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
