The Transformation
See It Before and After
Drag the slider to see this yard before Aaron's crew got to work, and after the zen garden was complete.
Before
After
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Zen garden design that turns your outdoor space into a place you actually want to slow down in. Raked gravel, thoughtful stone, plants that breathe.
Request a ConsultationDrag the slider to see this yard before Aaron's crew got to work, and after the zen garden was complete.
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A Zen garden looks effortless. Getting it there takes real care. The proportions of stone to gravel, the way a single boulder sits, the negative space between elements - these are decisions that determine whether the garden feels right or just looks like a photo. Aaron approaches each project by studying the space first: the sight lines from your home, the scale of the yard, the way light moves across the ground through the day.
What most homeowners love about a well-built Zen garden is that it changes with the seasons and the light without needing much from you. In winter, the bones of the design - stone, structure, evergreen - carry it. In spring, new growth softens and surprises. The maintenance is low because the design does the work.
Aaron has built Zen-influenced gardens across Ann Arbor for clients who want something meaningful in their yard, not just something to fill the space. The consultations are relaxed and honest - he'll tell you what will work, what won't, and why. Then he builds it right.
Start a ConversationWe take this work on across Washtenaw County. See what we build in Ann Arbor, or get in touch about your own property.
Common Questions
A zen garden (karesansui, or dry landscape) is one style within the broader Japanese tradition. It uses raked gravel, carefully placed stone, and very little planting to suggest water and landscape without using either. A Japanese garden more broadly may include ponds, moss, maples and a walking path. Zen gardens are usually meant to be viewed from one place rather than walked through.
Yes, if it's built correctly. The gravel bed sits on a compacted base with proper edging to hold it, and we use an angular gravel rather than rounded pea stone so the particles lock together instead of migrating. Snow melt and freeze-thaw are the real test in Ann Arbor, and the base is what passes it.
Whenever you want the pattern crisp. That's part of the point. Practically, most clients rake after heavy weather and before guests, which works out to a few times a month in the growing season. Leaves are the bigger job; a zen garden under a mature oak needs more attention in October than one in the open.
That's often the ideal spot. Narrow, underused side yards between houses are usually too shaded and too tight for a lawn or a patio, but they frame a dry garden beautifully, especially when the view is from an interior window.
Aaron works personally with every client from consultation through installation. No crews you've never met.
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