A Room With A View: Breaking Down this New England Garden

Lesson: When you have this kind of view, you don’t clutter it up!

In this New England garden (Massachusetts/Vermont border) designer Anthony Paul used locally sourced stones to create the retaining walls. Then tucked this intimate seating space from which to enjoy views all year round. (But especially in fall—and really, who could blame him.) Many considered choices went into creating a space that’s so powerful in its quiet simplicity.

Let’s break it down (and maybe steal an idea or two):

• Designing the deck as a circle nods to the rounded shape of the hills beyond. (In your head make this deck square-not the same, right?) Then matching the grey tones of the flooring to the nearby stone wall adds seamless cohesion.
• Selecting ornamental grasses that bloom just a bit earlier helps to extend the season. (An important consideration in colder zones where fall can come and go in the blink of an eye.) The choice of hardy plants also ensures that the garden can cope with the region’s extreme temperature and weather fluctuations.
• Carefully choosing muted colors of plantings so they do not even try to compete with the staggering views. Doesn’t this all just feels very natural, as if these plants landed there on the winds?

So, you don’t have a stunning view of the Green Mountains? That’s okay. The takeaway here is that simplicity and restraint pack a powerful punch—and that’s a message that resonates anywhere.

See this entire garden (and more of this designer’s spectacular work): Anthony Paul Landscape Design