French Country

Grey County, Ontario

The clients were inspired by the gardens of southwest France while on vacation there, and wanted to bring a bit of that feeling home with them. The house sits atop an escarpment which gives it sweeping views down towards Georgian Bay.

A rustic atmosphere was created by using random cut oversized Owen Sound flagstone and plantings that would spread and spill over its edge. Over 150 feet of stone walls were installed, and masons were instructed to have a very loose hand with the mortar to give it a more authentic French country appearance. The timber arbors atop the walls were made from salvaged beams from an old barn that was to be torn down.

A special yellow hued pea gravel was brought in as the client insisted that it was a key feature of bistro patios they had visited in france. Plantings of lavender, hydrangeas, begonia, oriental poppies, and several other perennials give the landscape endless beauty and fragrance all summer long.