Year: 2022

Location: Clinton Hill, Brooklyn

Scope: design, project management, masonry, woodwork, planting, lighting, maintenance

A rare, large specimen Magnolia x loebneri ‘Leonard Messel’ (Star Magnolia) anchors a densely-planted, pink and white flowering garden where a high, custom fence and charcoal-tiled patio create a private and stylish space for lounging and dining.

At the foot of the Magnolia, Distylium ‘Coppertone’ (Evergreen Witchhazel), Abelia grandiflora, Viburnum rhytidophyllum (Leatherleaf Viburnum), Viburnum carlesii (Koren Spice Viburnum) and Hydrangea quercifolia (Oak Leaf Hydrangea) offer height, color, and texture, layered together with Deutzia gracilis, Gaura lindheimeri (Bee Blossom), and Liriope muscari (Lilyturf). Here and there, Lonicera periclymenum (Honeysuckle) finds its way up the narrow planks of the fence. In a cut-out bed at the front of the garden, a row of fall-flowering Azaleas, underplanted with Liriope, forms a glossy, evergreen hedge.

A new lighting system, with glass globe sconces, creates an otherworldly and magical atmosphere that invites you into the garden at any time of day.