Open Ground

Boulder patio lit at dusk with fire features and guests by Luck Lagoons

Project Overview

Some properties give you a starting point to work from. This one came with a $100,000 project that another contractor had already put in and done wrong. Flat rural acreage, white post and rail fencing, and farmland running to the horizon behind the house, with an investment that had not delivered what the homeowner paid for.

A parcel with no edges is already the harder brief, and a project that has gone wrong once leaves no room for a second miss. Nothing on the site was going to define a space, which meant every edge, every level and every reason to walk somewhere had to be built right this time.

The work ran from early summer into late autumn, and it started where Luck Lagoons & Landscaping always starts, with the water.

Construction site with dirt ground, a young tree in a pot, a yellow plate compactor, and a house with a covered patio in the background.

Our Approach

Luck Lagoons built the project around:

Excavated Water Feature

A large lined basin dug and based out in July, set before any of the hardscape around it, because its edge decides the grade and the drainage for everything that follows.

Boulder Retaining and Seating Walls

Hand set stone giving the middle of the property a floor and a rim, and running the length of the fence line to tie the built space into the paddock beyond.

Large Format Paver Patio

Laid against the dark wood clad rear of the house and cut on site, so the joints ran where they were wanted rather than where the pallet decided.

Charcoal Paver Terrace with Soldier Course Edging

Set and measured by hand, with the curved edge run individually rather than clipped to a template.

Outdoor Kitchen

Stainless doors, drawers and grill units built into a run on the plank tile surface behind the house, close enough to the door to get used on a Tuesday.

Planting and Cobble Beds

Layered planting worked around the walls, with cobble beds and stone edging carrying the material language out to the fence.

Landscape Lighting

Set into the stone itself rather than onto poles above it, so the boulders and the timber pavilion still read after dark.

A dark textured surface, possibly a black or dark gray fabric or material.

THE RESULTS

By the middle of September the property was still mostly graded soil with the stonework standing in it, a young tree waiting in its pot beside a plate compactor. That is the stage of a build this size where a homeowner has to trust the drawing, because the finished thing is not visible yet and will not be for weeks.

It came together through October. The planting went in around the walls, the lighting went into the stone, and the fence line picked up a run of boulder wall that made the paddock read as part of the property rather than the end of it.

The last photographs from the job show a patio full of people, the fire is lit, the stone is washed with light, and the open field is still out there in the dark behind it all.

Outdoor garden scene with water fountains, greenery, trees, and a house in the background.
A landscaped outdoor area with large rocks and bricks, a wooden log, greenery, and a sunset in the background.
A landscaped backyard patio with outdoor seating, large rocks, green bushes, and flowering plants in front of a house with a brown roof.
Decorative garden water feature with three black vases with burning flames, large rocks, smaller stones, and three bowls with water, surrounded by plants and paved patio in the background.
A multi-tiered outdoor fountain with water flowing from a small slab into a large bowl, surrounded by various rocks and green-toned stones.
Backyard of a house during dusk, featuring a covered patio with string lights, a built-in grill, flower beds with colorful flowers, and outdoor seating.

Key Features

Water: Excavated and lined water feature, set before the surrounding hardscape

Hardscape: Large format sawn stone patio, charcoal paver terrace, soldier course edging

Stonework: Hand set boulder retaining and seating walls, fence line stone run

Outdoor Living: Built in outdoor kitchen with stainless grill and storage units

Gardens: Layered planting around the walls, cobble beds and stone edging

Lighting: Landscape lighting set into the stonework

A fire pit and boulder seating wall at golden hour by Luck Lagoons
A timber frame outdoor kitchen pavilion with flower beds by Luck Lagoons

Five months from open ground to a property that gives people a reason to stand outside in Ohio in late October.

A spacious backyard patio with a fire pit, water feature with multiple fires, outdoor seating, and a covered bar area, all connected by stone pathways.

Book a Consultation

Ready to build a property from open ground, with the water settled first and the stone, planting and lighting drawn around it?

We build across Toledo, Waterville, Ottawa Hills, Perrysburg, Sylvania, Maumee, and Monclova.

Schedule a Landscape Design Consultation