From Lawn to Landscape: Creating My Boulder Garden
See how a Connecticut gardener replaced lawn with a stunning boulder garden, blending art, structure, and vibrant plantings to create a welcoming backyard retreat.
Submitted by: Melinda, CT, Zone 6b
Reducing the amount of lawn in my backyard and creating a more inviting transition from the deck to the yard were the inspiration for my boulder garden (named for the 2-ton boulder I had brought in). In addition, the Paul Klee painting, The Harbinger of Autumn, served as an initial color palette/layout suggestion.
The before.
Picking out the stones was exciting and a little scary, as the decision was literally set in stone.
The structural work (dry-laid knee wall and bluestone patio) was done by contractors, led by Scott Hokunson of Blue Heron Landscape. Initially, the biggest challenge was patience—waiting for the work to be completed. That work was done in early winter.
'Elfin' thyme laid out in the patio garden.
I used PowerPoint to visualize a planting plan and started some bare root Monarda (bee balm) and Eryngium (sea holly) plants inside. In spring, I started planting, with 98 ‘Elfin’ thyme plugs in the patio.
The boulder bed.
In the boulder bed, I added shrubs for structure, including oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia), Black Lace® elderberry (Sambucus nigra), Rhododendron ‘Ramapo’, Juniperus squamata 'Blue Star', Steady Eddy® doublefile viburnum (Viburnum plicatum var. tomentosum), and bluebeard (Caryopteris), along with perennials and annuals.
Sharing the space with rabbits and squirrels has been a real challenge and one that I have not yet found a solution for.
In addition, the Eryngium turned out to be much more aggressive than expected, with seedlings filling the garden in year two. More patience and some grace for myself were required, as some plants grew taller than anticipated or weren’t the color that I expected.
But, the walkway and steps do make a welcoming path to the backyard and the patio is a lovely place to sit. There’s still more lawn to replace—maybe with a gravel garden at the base of the stone wall.
