A Modern Farmhouse Designed Around Its Garden and Meadow Views

A carefully crafted landscape dissolves the boundary between the cultivated and wild.

7 hours ago

Irene Rawlings,

Photo: Brandon Huttenlocher

When the homeowner purchased this property near Aspen, Colorado, the existing house was well built, but the landscape had been left largely unfinished. In retrospect, that was an advantage. “I wanted a modern-day farmhouse set in a garden and meadow,” he says, envisioning a home grounded in its surroundings rather than imposed upon them.

Original sketches for the landscaping were done by the late Thomas Landry, principal of New Orleans–based Thomas J. Landry & Associates, who also handled the home’s interior design. “We were sitting outside with a glass of wine when I asked how we should think about the landscaping,” the homeowner recalls. Landry grabbed his sketch pad, walked the property and said simply, “This is what I see.”

Photo: Brandon Huttenlocher

The property, with its panoramic mountain views, offered enormous possibilities—but it also came with challenges. The existing trees were struggling, the pond was choked with algae, and the property fronts a busy county road. To address these issues, the homeowner met with Tim McMichael, president of Carbondale, Colorado-based Landscape Workshop, and with Mike Albert and his team at Basalt, Colorado–based Design Workshop. “The challenge was twofold,” says Albert. “Maximize privacy and beauty for the homeowners while making the landscape submissive to the views.”

Because the existing trees were failing, reforestation became a cornerstone of the plan. Large-scale aspens, pines and spruces were planted along the perimeter in simple drifts to create a sense of permanence and privacy. “Scale was important,” notes Albert. “The trees had to feel appropriate to the property, not dwarfed by the house.” The property is bordered by dry ranchland, pastureland and tall-grass meadows. “We brought that larger landscape into the property and ‘borrowed’ the view,” says Albert. “When the homeowners look out, the views feel endless—and a property line does not exist.”

Photo: Brandon Huttenlocher

Next, attention turned to the pond. Soil dredged from it was repurposed to create gentle mounds that integrate the property with the meadows and direct sightlines away from the road. The pond itself was deepened and cleaned, creating a healthy aquatic ecosystem. “It was lowered by nearly five feet and is now visible from nearly every room in the house,” says Albert.

Closer to the house, the landscape takes on a more tailored character. Curated plantings—including catmint, yarrow, spirea and low-growing sumac—soften architectural edges and invite meandering exploration along stone pathways. Walls were introduced intentionally. Some define the home’s entry, while others frame the view or offer privacy.

Photo: Brandon Huttenlocher

The larger goal was to create a sense of expansiveness through the pond, landforms and distant views. “We wanted to integrate the property back to a time when grasses, trees and wildlife flourished,” Albert says, noting that a herd of elk regularly beds down in the pasture across the street.

“Each day at home is a new experience,” says the homeowner. “Mike and his team brilliantly maintained all the important view corridors, so we can see all four mountains throughout the day.” In the evenings, he adds, drinks are enjoyed on the dock overlooking the pond—an ideal vantage point for taking in the quiet rhythms of the landscape and the wildlife that moves through it.

Learn about shrub and groundcover planting here.