Photography by Michael Woodall Landscape designer Morgan Holt chose date palms to line the west side of the pool. He explains that the trees produce very little litter and provide “umbrella-type shade.”

A measured approach to a
renovation results in a unified backyard that embraces Contemporary Southwest design

Dated, noncohesive and nonfunctional. This is how Kate Groves describes her and husband Warren Meyer’s Paradise Valley, Arizona, backyard before its renovation two years ago. While the property’s Modern residence appealed to the couple’s taste, the landscape failed to reflect the home’s architecture. In addition, the hardscape looked disjointed, and a lack of shade trees left the west-facing backyard exposed to the intense summer sun.

The couple called on outdoor architectural designer Kirk Bianchi and landscape designer Morgan Holt to transform the area into a unified and usable space. “I can fix this,’’ Bianchi recalls thinking when he saw the property. “It’s so nice to have a house with good bones and lines. Here, we had a chance to make it right,” he says.

Bianchi, a Phoenix Home & Garden Master of the Southwest, was influenced by the home’s Contemporary elements, including a geometric-shaped trellis that extends from the front entry, through the house and across an exterior walkway to the backyard. He devised a plan that accentuates the structure’s angular presence. The design incorporates such elements as a diamond-shaped fire pit, a barbecue area, raised planting beds, and a secluded spa hidden behind a wall accented with geometric cutouts.

The barbecue area was one of the first elements incorporated into the new design. The existing white wall was extended to mirror a similar one that is situated across the pool. Kirk Bianchi says that this technique created “bookends” that balance and frame the backyard. The countertop is clad in the same granite as that used in the indoor kitchen. It also is utilized for the new fire pit and water feature.

A main component of the project was a remodel of the diamond-shaped pool. It was exposed to the summer sun and dominated by a large boulder waterfall. “The oversized rocks were reminiscent of the over-the-top hairstyles of the ’80s!” quips Groves.
 
Bianchi removed the water feature and reconfigured the pool’s shape by adding two sun shelves. Water from a rectangular water feature with a simple trough now spills into the pool, which has a zero edge. To provide much-needed shade here and elsewhere in the yard, three mature ironwood trees were planted.
 
Holt took inspiration from the sculptural trees when selecting vegetation for the rest of the landscape. “The plants center around the wonderful form of the ironwoods,” he notes. These include a row of twisted myrtles, which creates a hedge of twisting evergreen branches that screens the tennis court. Such plants as red canna lilies and blue salvias lend pops of color to the black and blue palette of the outdoor furnishings.
 
Groves describes the revitalized backyard as Zen-like and says she and her family enjoy the space every day, often eating meals on the covered patio and hosting alfresco holiday get-togethers. Hearing this brings a smile to Bianchi’s face. “This is one of the most dramatic transformations I’ve done,” he remarks. “It’s a 180-degree change.”

Tip
Kirk Bianchi says a landscape should be organized to frame a pool. Properly sized patio spaces should promote traffic flow, while focal points—such as fire elements and specimen-size plants—should draw the eye around the property. “Once these are in, the pool snaps into place like the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle,” he says.