I’m rebuilding a front yard for a client, and in order to generate more usable space, we decided to extend out the available square footage by building up a retaining wall along one side. The wall is an extension of what used to be there, and short rockery constructed by the contractor who built the house.
In the photos you can see the progression of events from the first few courses of the wall to the final, graded and plated look. I’ve repurposed rhododendrons from elsewhere on the property to go in front of the wall to in effect soften the rock face, giving ultimately a kind of peek-a-boo effect of fitted rock behind green branches. Above the rock wall I’ve repurposed azaleas to mirror the rhododendrons below.
Update: I’ve finished the initial retaining wall, built with Lynch Creek basalt quarried here in Washington state, and have moved to grading the upper terrace and installing an arched interlocking paver patio with accompanying polished Huckleberry basalt bench.