Elaborate pavilions, swimming pools and expansive hardscaping are all very well—fabulous, in fact—but nothing packs a punch like a garden festooned in bright, seasonal color. McLean homeowners understood this truism when they hired McHale Landscape Design to work its magic on their two-acre lot.

“The plantings had a limited color palette and lacked continued visual interest,” recounts landscape architect Anthony Cusat. “The clients wanted an impactful garden rich in color and texture.”

The whole-property makeover involved reinstalling existing plants as well as adding many new ones. “The gardens were not thriving; they’d been planted too deep and then piled on with mulch during subsequent seasons,” Cusat explains. “We carted out tons of soil and mulch and replanted large species, including evergreen trees, above grade.”

The once-sparsely adorned driveway is now bordered by Green Giant arborvitae and colorful blossoms. A terraced front garden features holly, boxwood, Knock Out roses and allium. Annuals and bulbs bring swaths of color. In back, an existing pool area was softened by perennial and annual beds, which conceal pool equipment and create transitions between zones.

A Bermuda grass pickleball court—inspired by a trip to Wimbledon—nestles beyond the pool. “We constructed it like a golf green, with drainage beneath the turf,” Cusat explains. At either end, storage structures complement the home’s architecture. An adjacent stone patio provides a perch for viewing the action.

Award: Grand for Complete Landscape Master Planning. Landscape Architecture: Anthony R. Cusat, PLA; Architectural Design & Construction: Sam Dusenbery, McHale Landscape Design. Architecture: Purple Cherry Architects. Builder: Joy Design/Build.