When you improve one area...

... then you have to fix up another. Our screened porch expansion this summer meant steps we formerly used to get from the front to the back of the house wound up under the deck and needed to be moved. But we didn't just move the steps, we upgraded to stone.  In the foreground are the steps that go from the top of the wooden curved set up to the level of the raised garden - in the background is a new stacked stone retaining wall and more stairs that take you to the level of the back of the house.

We have to admire the expertise of the landscaping crew that moved these huge rocks and positioned them to be level and spaced for an easy climb.  To honor the work of these young men, here are some additional views. There is also a lot of new shrubbery, but all you can see right now is the mulch that was blown in yesterday.  In the upper right of this next photo you might spot our relocated witch hazel. Its February blooms should brighten up this area a bit. To the right of it, behind and to the right of the raised garden, are five new itea, and a pair of new beautyberries.  Only one itea is visible on the far right here. To the left of the witch hazel are some ten new winter blooming jasmine, and 20 ferns right along the new retaining wall.

Here's another view from the top of those stairs. Our landscaper now has a talented designer who is responsible for the plant choices and locations. She also added another American Beautyberry to the slope next to the big retaining wall - and one of the displaced clethra moved to the same area.

Let's have one last shot of the back, with our original stairs to the logging road and view of the back steps. The large flat rock next to the porch stairs conceals a large drain.

The angle in the next photo shows we displaced a lot of plants.  The rhubarbs had to move to make room for the steps, and an entire row of shrubs in front of the studio on the lower level found new homes around the yard to make room for the stepping stones that lead you to this new stone hardscaping.

This is how the path from the front door looks today.

While we're here let's pause to appreciate the fall color of one of the St. John's Worts. These went in as little plants no more than 8 inches high just over four years ago. This one has been pruned to about a third of the size it had before the landscape makeover started.

Here's that purple beautyberry at the top of the driveway. The color really stands out in the bleakness of the late fall.

The curved set of wood steps are now bordered on one side by many of the clethra that formerly lived next to the deck or in front of the studio, and on the other by a new row of diervilla, also known as  bush honeysuckle. They are very green here, but are a deciduous plant.

One final view down the stairs.  We hope the diervilla will serve as a pretty border between the meadow and the steps.

For now, we're looking at a lot of mulch and the bare wildflower meadow - we'll just have to wait to see how it will develop next spring and in the coming years.