That expression about being able to see the forest for the trees assumes real meaning for the owners of a stunning cove-front property near Lyme. When a husband and wife bought this 18-acre parcel of land, it was heavily wooded, yet they were already able to “see” some of the gardens and lawns they hoped to create. “We had a strong vision for the property,” the husband explains. “We saw through those trees, and we even planted perimeter trees and foundations for the garden before we started building the house. We had a lot of ideas, but it took Peter Cummin, the landscape architect, and Josh Novak, who planted every bulb and tree, to realize them for us.”
Dappled Willow bush trees flank the end of one of the more formal garden rooms, which has a water feature defined by natural cleft-finish bluestone walkways. Also prominent are purple ostrich ferns and yellow irises.
Plantings around the pool include hosta, Russian sage and climbing wisteria atop the pergola.
The densely planted rock garden has a wide variety of plants, such as geranium ‘Biokovo,’ creeping thyme, Solomon’s seal and oenothera.
The family often gathers for meals beneath a handsome, and decidedly architectural, columned rotunda. The pathway is lined with salvia. A honey locust tree provides additional shade for the outdoor area.
The picturesque cove is visible throughout the property. A pathway through the rock garden passes by plantings of Lady’s Mantle, Northern Lady Fern, geranium ‘Biokovo’ and astilbe.
In the rock garden, a variety of hardy succulents are tucked into tight crevices and provide bursts of color and texture within wide expanses of stone.
Northern Lady Fern and pink oenothera grow in abundance in the carefully planned space.
Situated within the manmade pond are native grasses, yellow iris, ostrich fern, and roses and catmint.
The bluestone walkway wraps around the water feature and leads back to the main house.
Some of the stone walls were built on the property before the main house was completed. In some places, the walls are nearly completely enveloped with climbing roses. Catmint and allium add pops of purple.
In addition to working with clients who had an inspired vision, the other asset in abundance was the land itself. “This is simply one of the best sites on the whole East Coast,” says Cummin, whose designs included an organically shaped pool; a meditative rock garden that appears, at once, natural and geometric; and a rectilinear water garden that appears to flow, metaphorically and actually, from the expansive house itself. “It’s the best piece of property seen anywhere in Connecticut,” he adds.
The wife wanted a rock garden that, as Cummin describes it, would be a “contemplative” destination. “What we made looks natural—a difficult effect to achieve,” he says. Sizeable expanses of local stone were assembled in such a way that the outcroppings appear endemic to the land while also configured in a deliberate pattern. Cummin designed a water system that flows subtly among the rocks, and he chose a variety of plantings, the most conspicuous being ferns. “Ferns are key to this garden,” he notes. “They grow like crazy and deer don’t feed on them.”
“The prevailing idea with the rock garden was to create a reason to be there and to enjoy the view to the water once you do get there,” explains the homeowner, who admits to not being a hands-on gardener but, rather, someone interested more in the mood created by plantings. “I’ll be honest, I don’t really care what a particular plant is—I’m totally happy to have the landscape architect and my wife pick them out. I’m a photographer. I’m more about the aesthetics.”