BEST LANDSCAPE DESIGN/OUTDOOR
MANATEE CAPE DUTCH BORDEN LANDSCAPE DESIGN
This South African Cape Dutch-inspired home rests on a tranquil, 30acre pine and oak hammock with panoramic views of the Manatee River. The design concept is based on the homeowner’s love of nature, the stewardship of the river’s edge and the ability to incorporate Florida’s native materials into the exterior living spaces. As relaxed as it is sophisticated, the landscape enveloping the residence allows the homeowners to wander through the park-like grassed areas around the property – with tall longleaf pines, grand live oaks and cabbage palms providing relief from the Florida sun. The koi garden, which is the most welcoming feature of the property, has an elevated koi pond with planter walls and a wood pergola that spans 60 feet. The garden room is walled on all sides for privacy, while deterring predators at night. The koi garden is filled with a variety of carefully selected native and tropical plantings, aquatic species for the pond, and coral stepping stones and wall cladding that enhance the architectural expression. As the recirculating fountain offers a calming trickle of water into the koi pond, the space exudes tranquility. Native oolite stones provide the walking path connection from the sheltered dining area to the pool courtyard, where the oolite coral stone becomes a decking material for the pool. A Cape Dutch-inspired planter wall was designed to separate the koi garden and pool area, becoming a gateway into both experiences. The placement for the outdoor dining, koi garden and pool courtyard was aligned on an axis defined by the main entrance to the home, and is bisected by a limestone gravel driveway.
Architect: Randall Paul Sample Landscape: C&C Landscaping Pool: Ma hew Russell Photographer: Coastal Home Photography Walls & Planters: Sco Myna
S I LV E R
Architect: Leader Design Studio Contractor/Builder: Jim Meyer Construction Interior Design: SAWA Design Studio Landscape: DWY Landscape Architects Pool: DWY Landscape Architects Photographer: Ryan Gamma Landscape Contractor: Coast Outdoor Services
LIDO BEACH HOUSE DWY LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
Projects like the Lido Beach House can be developed to help sustain the natural world we live in by incorporating native vegetation, storm resiliency, bio-filtration and existing ecosystems. Working within the coastal regulations of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the landscape architect pushed the cultivated landscape away from the sensitive dune system to nullify impacts. Also, following best practices, seaward development was limited to the limits of the previous homestead, further reducing the impact on the existing coastal systems. The historic drainage pa ern that allowed stormwater to flow to the dune and into the municipal storm system, carrying nitrates and other nutrients, was altered by creating a large a enuation basin for stormwater collection and biofiltration on site. The overall site plan grounds the elevated structure in a series of resilient coastal gardens. At the entry, a shell-topped concrete driveway is fragmented by strips of grass that curve to mimic sea oats in the adjacent dune. Beyond the entry gate, an intimate courtyard garden, shaded by sabal palms and a gumbo limbo tree, is planted with native ferns and no-mow zoysia grass. Solitaire, coconut, and native sabal and paurotis palms wrap the property, connecting it with the neighborhood’s fabric, while providing a buffer from the busy public beach access path at the southwest corner (and the closely-sited neighbors to the north and east). In contrast, the living space and pool deck at the west open wide toward the beach. Within the pool garden, the existing dune vegetation is complemented by muhly and fakahatchee grass, sabal palms and silver bu onwood. The foreground of the landscape, the vista of the dune and the horizon over the Gulf all reinforce the thoughtful connection of the architecture and landscape within the existing ecologically sensitive site, using proven sustainable practices to improve the world we live in.
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