The Lakeside Garden

Some properties come with a setting so extraordinary that the greatest design challenge is simply doing it justice. The Lakeside Garden sits on the edge of a private Illinois lake, with sweeping water views that serve as the backdrop for every outdoor experience on the property. Green View's task was to create a landscape that honored that setting, one that felt as natural and inevitable as the land itself.

The backbone of the project is a series of tiered natural stone retaining walls that step down from the house toward the lake, organizing the sloping site into a sequence of distinct outdoor environments. Each level has its own character and purpose, upper terraces for entertaining and dining, mid-level garden beds overflowing with perennials, and a pool level that opens toward the water with clean, unobstructed views.

The planting design is arguably the most ambitious element of the project. Dense perennial borders packed with coneflowers, black-eyed susans, salvias, ornamental grasses, and seasonal annuals create an ever-changing tapestry of color and texture that peaks in midsummer and carries interest well into fall. Container plantings with tropical specimens add bold focal points throughout the patio and pool areas.

A greenhouse addition connects the interior of the home to the garden in a way that blurs the line between inside and outside, while a flagstone stepping path winds down through the plantings to a lakefront boat dock framed by ornamental grasses and flowering perennials.

The result is a landscape that feels simultaneously designed and completely natural, a property that has grown into itself over time and rewards every visit with something new to discover.