This was the area for the firepit. After the work was completed a friend of mine pointed out to me how much this stone work reminded her of the stone paths and walkways in syria. My fathers mother’s family is from Damascus so I took a great liking to the idea there was some syrian influence coming through me during the building of these patios.

If you are building a patio for your enjoyment take your time selecting the materials. Before you go with a cheesy overdone brick paver get some prices on natural stone – nothing beats the look of natural stone and if it can fit into the budget then all the better.

This is one of my favorite trees. I came to this tree about 3 to 4 years ago. Originally it’s form was very much wild and overgrown – not that anything is wrong with wild and naturally grown except this client was looking for some fancy . I pruned this tree about 50%+ down from where it was and fully reconfigured the shape. We gave it over 100 custom blended food plugs coupled with a top coating of compost and soil conditioners. We did that in the fall. That following spring the tree simply exploded into color and has since been utterly vibrant.

I have not pruned this tree in a season but the basic form I created is 90%  present. We will be touching it up shortly along with a few other tasks in this truly enjoyable birmingham garden.

Cheers to the designer of this garden – we do not know who exactly. Stunning simplicity and performance – all it needed was our magic soil care and it went from being a tree that lost it’s leaves by late july to a power bloomer that is green until the fall turns her yellow.

IMAGINE EDIBLE: As perfect as this tree is, if I were to design this same space today I would replace the mrytle with strawberry and plant a semi circle of peach trees along the outer edge of the circle, forming a half moon – from inside the walk closest to the house this would create a very warm and inviting sitting space and from the outside/road the stunning spring flowers and the luminous abundant summer fruits. Imagine Edible. Garden Smart.