A vacation cottage renovation project db Landscaping worked on last fall recently won an award from the New Hampshire Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and a Cornerstone Award from the NH Home Builders and Remodelers Association.

The cottage, located on “The Point” on Pleasant Lake, New London, was part of a popular family vacation spot in the 1950’s.  When the original owner passed away, our clients bought two of the lots, keeping this one to supplement their vacation home square footage a couple of streets away and posting the other lot for sale.

The original site had plenty of sand and minimal vegetation.  Our landscape design included both hardscape elements and plantings.  Large oversized stepping stones were placed to provide an attractive path from the beach area to the end of The Point.  Crushed stone was spread along the middle of the path to create a seating area on The Point for family and friends to enjoy the lake.

In the lower level of the cottage, the area under the porch was cleared and bordered to create a distinct area between the tree line and the beach area.  Stone steps rise from the beach area to the upper level and flow around the front of the cottage, creating a main entrance area and framing the driveway.  Boulders were strategically placed as feature stones along the walking path and in the beds, creating visual interest and defining the space.

During the landscape construction, we used a silt fence erosion control system and used plywood on the machine access path to protect the existing root systems as required by the Town of New London and the Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act (CSPA).

Plantings included using indigenous and hardy vegetation, including Autumn Brilliance Service Berry trees, bearberry, dogwood, sweetfern, hydrangea, juniper and sumac shrubs, as well as bugleweed, fern, geranium, hosta, and thyme to provide a visually pleasing landscape, again that appears as if it had been there for years.