The Garden Notebook
Prune for the flowers you want to keep
Identify where the buds form before choosing the season, the method, or the first branch to remove.
The Backyards Library
A little curiosity. A better backyard.
Gardens to explore, things to grow, and ideas for the way you live outside. Browse the stories or follow a collection below.
Find a story ↓A few good places to start
Follow a reading path.
A Backyards reading path
At home outdoors
A porch to settle into, a table for company, and flowers brought in from the garden.
A Backyards reading path
Before the first shovel
A clear brief, a realistic sequence, and the decisions that make a project easier to understand.
A Backyards reading path
The ground beneath the garden
Water, soil, exposure, and the planting decisions that begin with the place.
A Backyards reading path
Small space, full life
Compact courtyards, useful corners, and rooms that do more with less.
A Backyards reading path
The generous table
A comfortable place to gather, from a weekday supper to a garden party.
A Backyards reading path
A quieter kind of garden
Reading places, softer boundaries, and a more personal relationship with outdoors.
A Backyards reading path
The material edit
Compare surfaces, patterns, and the details at their edges before committing.
A Backyards reading path
Easier to live with
Care, storage, and thoughtful choices for a garden that fits your routine.
A Backyards reading path
Life by the water
Read the pool and its garden as one outdoor setting.
A Backyards reading path
Find your garden language
Translate the styles you admire into a place that belongs to your home.
A Backyards reading path
A garden within reach
Welcoming routes, comfortable destinations, and a plan that works for the people using it.
Find your next good idea.
Project Feature
A kitchen garden with a room of its own
Raised beds, a circular gate, and a garden retreat give productive ground the presence of an outdoor room.
McHale Landscape DesignEaston, Maryland
Material Matters / Product noteTimberTech
TimberTech Vintage: a deck in three board widths
Compare narrow and wide boards across the furnished deck before settling on a layout.
The Garden Notebook
Divide a perennial with somewhere to go
Read the clump, prepare its next home, and use division to renew a planting or repeat a good idea.
Project Feature
A hillside garden with somewhere to linger
A planted watercourse, stone paths, and an open terrace give a sloping garden a sequence of destinations.
Pacific Outdoor LivingStudio City, California
Material Matters / Product noteTrex
Trex Lineage: muted color and the question of heat
Composite decking in a range of muted tones, with the practical questions to ask before choosing.
The Garden Notebook
One good tomato plant, within reach
Choose the cultivar and container together, then make room for support, watering, and a harvest worth the care.
Project Feature
Separate places, one compact backyard
Dining by the house, a lower fire terrace, and an upper putting area give a sloping yard a clear order.
Gardens of Babylon LandscapesNashville, Tennessee
Material Matters / Product noteTecho-Bloc
Blu 60 Smooth, from the garden path to the patio
A smooth concrete slab family puts laying pattern and joint rhythm into the design conversation.
The Garden Notebook
Give a rain barrel a useful job
Match a modest water supply to ornamental planting, and plan the overflow as carefully as the collection.
Project Feature
An existing deck becomes an outdoor room
A fireplace and open pergola reshape an elevated deck, while a lower terrace gives the garden a second gathering place.
Mom's Design BuildEdina, Minnesota
Material Matters / Product noteBelgard
Belgard Origins and the art of the paving border
Stone-textured single-piece units put the emphasis on edges, junctions, and a carefully composed paving plan.