Chevy Chase Village Historic Garden

This historic home was lovingly restored by its owners. The surrounding landscape had been neglected over the years, and one of the first phases of the garden’s renovation was to clean up and edit the gardens and then create easy circulation and accessibility around the perimeter of the house.

The rear entrance was a low point on the property and constantly muddy. A new concrete landing, set of steps and brick path was created to connect the back to the front, and stone steppers set into the planting beds provided a naturalistic path to the lawn on the other side. All the downspouts were routed to a dry stream bed that meandered along the back of the property  to direct the water and collect what pooled naturally from the downward slope of the lawn. Native perennials, shrubs and ground covers were planted within and on the berms of the swale to absorb the water along the way and provide a food source for pollinators and wildlife. This conservation landscape received the maximum credit rebate by the Montgomery County Rainscapes program.

The property also featured a stunning walled garden and fountain designed by Rose Greely, DC’s first female Landscape Architect. The fountain was restored and the water died black to set off the waterlilly, then back planted with Hollies to stop the view and draw attention to the old lichen covered stone wall. At night, this lovely wall is lit with a soft warm glow, as is the very ancient Sweetbay Magnolia that was planted by Ms. Greely.

The front entrance was redone with a herringbone brick pattern and the entrance garden planted with a consortium of boxwoods, fragrant lilacs, unusual conifers and ornamental grasses and perennials.