Outdoor Design, Poolscaping, Luxury Pools :Rocky Retreats

About a dozen years ago, I spent a week's vacation in a remote part of the West Indies. One afternoon, I discovered a lovely stream-fed pool in the forest, surrounded by boulders that beckoned to be used as steps leading into the refreshing water. The natural pool made me wonder if pool and landscape designers could create such a scene.

Today I know the answer is a resounding yes.

Whether they use natural stone, simulated rock or a combination, talented pool and landscape designers create lagoon-style marvels that rival Mother Nature. Caves, grottos and waterfalls are just a few of the rocky creations that transform basic backyard pools into crystal clear ponds that appear to be carved from their surroundings.

Natural boulders can function as simple landscape accents, too. A few small stones placed strategically along a pathway, in a planting bed, on the pool deck, or even within the pool, can help unify the design. At the other end of the scale, two-ton boulders can form a 10-ft. high waterfall. In-between, the options include diving rocks incorporated into stone walls or boulder waterfalls, a treatment standing alone on the water's edge, an island tanning platform, or a spillway from an elevated spa or upper pool into a lower pool. Rock can also form retaining walls or underwater bands that signal elevation or depth changes, as well as caves, slides or handrails cut from limestone.

The only limit on the scope of a rock creation is your budget. One monetary concern is the source of the rock. Rock may be mined and shipped, or it can be unearthed during the excavation process. When the perfect rocks are found on site, the shipping costs are eliminated; however, one should not count on such a discovery. On two adjacent properties in Texas Hill Country, for example, it is not uncommon for one crew to excavate limestone boulders the size of a car, and right next door find only baseball size stones after three weeks of digging. Either scenario can result in a masterful waterfall combining limestone of various sizes, colors and textures.

Another common choice for waterfalls in parts of Texas is moss rock, which is shipped to other regions as well. Moss rock gets its name from the dry lichens attached to it, which give it a gray or green hue. Meanwhile, stacked flagstone is a typical choice for a fireplace or retaining wall, and tumbled flagstone may line a meandering stream.

While some builders are fortunate enough to work in environments rich with usable stone, others routinely import Rocky Mountain quartz, Tennessee crab orchard stone and Pennsylvania bluestone or limestone. Greater shipping distances can drive up costs.

Color Choices


While budget may be a factor in setting the scale of the project, once you select certain elements, the rock choice depends primarily on the desired color, and, secondarily, on what is being created from the rock. Therefore, a diving platform should have a large, smooth surface that will be safe and comfortable for bare feet. Also, flat slabs stack well for retaining walls and work as coping, while large round boulders are best for building giant waterfalls and to retain ground in significant grade change applications. Furthermore, white limestone behaves like a naturally cool deck, whereas dark brown Oklahoma stone may get too hot in the sun for walking comfortably.

As important as these kinds of selections are, color is often the deciding factor, but be careful. One might think that Pennsylvania bluestone would have a consistent bluish tint; however, it can be different shades of green, gray, brown, and, yes, sometimes blue. Because of the wide variety available, many builders bring their clients to the stone yard to select the stone that will best complement the architecture of the home and other plans for the property.

Most builders of the kind of high-end pools that would incorporate this fine rockwork put desired color and texture at the top of the list and workability at the bottom, assuming the budget can cover the selection.

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All About Swimming Pool Design Ideas

When it comes to deciding to bring a pool into your yard, there is no bigger decision to make then the design of it. The design of the pool not only affects the beauty of the entire pool but also how well it will work within the yard space that you have available. The first thing you want to do is to think about how much of your yard you want covered by a pool and then you can work from there. It is also a good idea to think about the swimming pool maintenance that will be involved with the pool you pick out.

The bigger the pool, the more work that you are going to have to put into it. This is another reason why it is so important to think over several swimming pool design ideas.

The swimming pool design ideas that you think of should be thought about carefully so that you do not make any snap decisions and then later on end up regretting your decision. Also make sure that you talk over any and all of your swimming pool design ideas with your family to get their input. Not only could they have personal opinions to share with you but also they may think of something about the design that you did not.

Where To Find New Ideas For Your Pool

If you at a complete loss for any swimming pool design ideas, it is important that you start to look around for a little help. If you have any neighbors or friends that have had to come up with their own swimming pool design ideas on their own before, you could always ask them for a little help. If they are not able to help you or your simply do not like their ideas, there are still other ways to come up with some excellent swimming pool design ideas.

There are a lot of books, magazine articles, and Internet web sites that could give you plenty of swimming pool design ideas that you could think over. Take a little bit of what you learn from those places and you could then create your very own swimming pool design ideas. You do not have to sue exactly what you see everywhere else but by taking a look at someone else's swimming pool design ideas you could come up with some excellent ones of your own that you could put in your own backyard.