Garden

Garden Makeover: From Slippery Slope to Sensational

Check out this extreme makeover by Ruth Olde of Blasig Landscape Design – on a suburban lot that was “difficult to mow, unattractive and unusable.”

By Davinia Yip /

While the upper deck above was glorious, the ground below this home sloped away at an uncomfortable rate.

“The lawn was difficult to mow and the area unattractive and unusable,” says Ruth Olde, president of Blasig Landscape Design Construction Ltd. and author of Landscaping Made Easy By Design. Olde and her associates quickly brought form and functionality to this landscape, using basalt walls and levelling the area between the bottom of the deck, the entry to the basement and the access to the side of the house. The side of the deck has been covered with siding to match the house and creates a comfortable backdrop. Curved, wide (Old Country Stone) paver steps invite visitors down to the next area, which has also been levelled and includes a small vegetable garden.

Before