The Sterns have lived in their home for 15 years, and for most of it, the back yard has been a water-logged mess. Over the years, they have gotten help from at least five different landscapers who tried to fix their backyard drainage problem. Nothing worked. The ducks, however, loved their back yard. “We had a lot of flooding. Water would come right up to our back deck, and it would be so high that ducks literally swam around our back yard,” says Bonnie. “Our back yard was a mess. We stopped wanting to come out to use it, and we weren’t gardening anymore. It wasn’t green or pretty. It simply stopped bringing us joy.” In comes Greenwise. In late fall 2019, Marc Wise and Dave McKinney, one of our landscape designers, met with the Sterns, discussed what they were looking for, walked through their property with them, and developed a plan. The Sterns wanted to achieve a natural-looking backyard and be as organic as possible, which of course, is an objective close to our hearts. To meet their expectations, we designed a solution that was both utilitarian and aesthetically pleasing.

The Greenwise Solution to the Drainage Problem

First, we dug up the back yard and re-graded it. By re-grading the yard, we were able to create a more efficient system for collecting and diverting water. To keep the water from building up, we installed a drainage system consisting of hidden pipes and cisterns. To absorb even more water, we designed and installed a rain garden in the southeast corner to act as a beautiful corner piece of the yard. Lastly, we re-sodded the entire back yard with the end result being a lawn that’s gorgeous and hard working. The Sterns may still get some flooding when we have consistent, heavy rainfalls, but the water goes down quickly in less than a day, whereas before it typically took longer than a week. Now, when you walk into Bonnie and Larry’s home, one of the first things you notice through their large patio glass doors is their beautiful, lush green lawn. It feels like a natural extension of their home. “We used to garden a lot. We even traveled to horse farms to get manure for our garden. Then, when our back yard got so horrible, we stopped. We weren’t anxious to do anything in the back yard. Now, we enjoy the garden when we are outside and from inside our home. We can’t wait for the growing season,” exclaimed Bonnie. “We had confidence in Greenwise and felt like they knew what they were doing, and they did. They are on it for everything. I love everybody. Marc, Dave and Marcos (their new client relationship manager) are a crew from heaven–they are so nice and efficient. Even our weekly maintenance crew is friendly. They always say good morning and are very pleasant. We’ve had a lot of gardeners over the years, so this is a real pleasure,” Bonnie says.

THIS IS A PICTURE OF THE STERN’S FLOODED BACK YARD FROM LAST YEAR BEFORE WE INSTALLED THE DRAINAGE SYSTEM AND THE RAIN GARDEN TO ALLEVIATE THE FLOODING ISSUES.

WE PLANTED LATE IN THE SEASON AND THE SNOW CAME EARLY! LITERALLY WITHIN DAYS OF PLANTING AND RE-SODDING, THE YARD WAS COVERED IN SNOW. NO WORRIES—THE LAWN IS LUSH THIS SPRING!

LAST YEAR’S YARD WITH BARE PATCHES AND AN EXPOSED DRAIN, WHICH WE REPLACED WITH AN UNDERGROUND DRAINAGE SYSTEM. OUR 5-STEP FERTILIZATION PROGRAM HELPS ENSURE A HEALTHY, VIBRANT LAWN.

ANOTHER ANGLE OF LAST YEAR’S FLOODED BACK YARD BEFORE GREENWISE RE-GRADED AND INSTALLED A DRAINAGE SYSTEM.

THIS IS THEIR YARD FROM EARLY SPRING 2020. IT’S TOO EARLY FOR THE RAIN GARDEN (BACKGROUND) TO BE IN BLOOM, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE YARD ISN’T FLOODED, EVEN AFTER GETTING DELUGED WITH RAIN. PLUS, IT’S GREEN AND LUSH!

ANOTHER ANGLE OF THE NEW BACK YARD. DON’T YOU JUST WANT TO ROLL IN IT?

The Garden in Full Bloom Two Years Later

Here are some more recent photos after the rain garden has had a couple of years to grow in. Looking spectacular!

THE RAIN GARDEN IN FULL BLOOM TWO YEARS AFTER INSTALLATION.

A CLOSE UP OF THE DUTCH IRIS IN BLOOM. ***