Outdoor Fireplace Using Veneer Cast Stone

This recent project found me near Irondale, Alabama. The homeowners decided they wanted an outdoor fireplace for their backyard. They had already installed the masonry insert, themselves (and did a great job) when they called me. My part of the project was to install the stone over the insert. The “stone” was actually manufactured veneer cast stone (best I can tell,,,a light weight concrete aggregate poured into molds and dyed). I'll have to admit, the product can be easy to work with (not always the case when dealing with angles that aren't 90 degrees) and it looks pretty much like actual stone unless you do a close inspection or notice that there are some repeated pieces. I think I'm still partial to real stone, but for a first time using this, I'll have to say it turned out better than I imagined. Other notable aspects of the fireplace is the television mount on the chimney (the homeowner is going to move the mount a couple of inches; after that is done, a tan stucco will be applied around the mount. Also some sort of iron art or perhaps a wreath will be used to hide the mount when the television isn't mounted). The hearth is a big ol' piece of limestone (snapped, not cut!) and the mantle was milled by my good friend, Herb, using local cedar.

Not only humans can find creative ways to stay warm!

These two furry critters reside at a favorite local nursery and they managed to discover that the hot house there uses a double layer of plastic. It looks tight, but these two possums didn't seem to mind it or the activity taking place twenty or thirty feet below. Not only did they benefit from the radiant heat generated from the green house covering, but they also enhanced the warmness with some cute and cuddly snuggling.

PHOTO: Two possums staying warm during chilly Alabama weather (they could be racoons, it was hard to tell from that distance)

Extreme landscaping in Homewood, Alabama

Extreme, in the sense that the job was to tame the slope and gain access to a flat area at the top of the slope. In short, the area was de-weeded, hand graded, and a combination of softscape and hardscape incorporated into the design.

Act like an adult !!!

About 15 or 20 years ago, I knew some local Alabama growers who had taken cuttings from the adult foliage of English ivy vine and grew them into small shrubs. I remember thinking that those little 10 inch tall one gallon plants were quite nice, but I really didn't know what form they would take or how quickly they would grow. There was also a concern that some of the foliage would revert back to the juvenille form and take on the characteristics of a typical English ivy vine.

It's really cool, for me, when I run into one of my earlier plant installations. Such was the case when I was doing a job across the street from my one and only planting of Adult Ivy Shrub.
I was amazed that the plants had survived in this non-irrigated yard for all of those years. And not only survived, but thrived!

The leaves of adult ivy don't have the distinct lobes that typical Ivy has. If you ever see an English ivy fine climbing a tall tree, take time to look up high. It is there that you will see the adult leaves. On close inspection you'll find each leaf to have a ruffled edge and a distinct and attractive pattern of venation. It is also from adult ivy leaves where flowering and fruiting occur. The flowers are of no ornamental significance, but the fruit are quite nice. From what I could tell, these three plants (they had grown into plants about 4'-4.5'tall by 4.5'-5' wide) had not been pruned.


Is there a more appropriate name for these shrubs than Adult Foliage English Ivy Plant? There may be, but my initial research did not turn up any mention of using Adult English Ivy (Hedera helix) foliage in shrub form.

You've Got Mail ! - Brown Stone Mail Box

One way to add to your curb appeal is to make an improvement to one of the first things a visitor sees when they happen upon your humble abode. The mail box!
This is a stone mail box I built a couple of months ago, South of Birmingham, AL. Aside from ditching the rotting wooden post that was the structure for the faded, black box, I also moved the location of the mail box to be more convenient for the homeowners. And, while yes, most of the new metal box is hidden behind stone, the homeowners and I agreed that an upgrade there was in order. The new box is larger than the old one and has a nice copper finish to it that was a nice compliment to the stone. Finally, the day after the finishing touches were done, I hid in some nearby bushes and watched as the postman delivered the mail. Yes! The mail was delivered successfuly and I was able to move on, with confidence, to the next job.

A Place to Hang : Brown stack stone wall with firepit, stone benches, and crushed ore patio.

The longer I'm in the business of landscaping, the more I'm finding homeowners that are interested in creating outdoor living spaces for family and friend to enjoy. Often times, this includes the incorporation of stone into the landscape.

My most recent project took me to a home in Birmingham, Alabama. The challange was to build a wall and patio area that turned what was a sloping wooded hillside into a space large enough to use for entertaining large gatherings, but small enough for intimate get togethers. The inclusion of a fire pit made this "outdoor room" suitable for the fall and winter, as well.

To achieve a natural look, brown stone was used for the wall and fire pit. The patio area surface is crushed red rock. The brown stone benches were delivered to the site from a local quarry. It was important that warm, curved lines were used in the design of the different components to give the project an "organic" or "old world" appeal.

 

(click on images for closer inspection)

Sometimes Stepping Stones Won't Do

The space between the parking area and the back yard of this Vestavia home is well traveled by adults, children and grand children,,,and me. For years, I had done work in this yard, often inadvertently pushing around the stepping stones that were sitting in the underlying muddy terrain. Then one day it dawned on me. These folks need a solid, mortared walkway! Now, they're happy, their children and grand children are happy, and, I'm happy. Yeah!