Date:  February 27, 2026  |   Story: Tiffany Adams  |   Photography: Rett Peek  |  

A renovated outdoor space on the outskirts of west Little Rock becomes a place of solace and renewal for generations of a family

With a wooded landscape, pasture views, and a pond, this west Little Rock property would be a dream for almost anyone, but it has been a particular source of peace and solace for one family. “He called this his green pastures and still waters,” the owner says of her late husband. Purchased in 2022 following a cancer diagnosis, the couple held on to the property as they navigated the unknown before embarking on a full-scale renovation while he was undergoing treatment. They assembled a team consisting of landscape designer Chris H. Olsen, interior designer Katie Rees, and contractor Mary Jane Herr, who could assist them in getting the spaces right for their family not only now, but for years to come. “This was a legacy project for him,” the wife explains. “We have seven grandsons; it’s so good for their mental health and well-being for them to run wild here,” she adds.

The renovation plans were also a welcome—and worthwhile—distraction during his battle. “He said, I need something different to think about so cancer doesn’t consume every thought,” she recalls. This led to conversations with Chris and Katie—often via phone while he was in the chair for chemo infusions—and ultimately resulted in plans to make the outdoor spaces conducive to their love of cooking, hosting, and spending time with family. “It brought him enormous joy in a really depressing time,” she says.

Having worked together on the couple’s previous home, Chris knew of their penchant for colorful year-round blooms and interest in the garden. “The person who lived here before them was a master gardener and had a beautiful English garden, so I wanted to honor those good bones as well,” Chris says, adding that he feels the landscape should always tie to the home’s style. “Now, it has a natural, free-flowing feel with a European flair,” he says.

The exterior makeover included the addition of an outdoor kitchen, screened porch, and pool house, along with reworking the front entrance from an unenclosed corridor that connected the garage and house to a hallway within the home. After the space was enclosed, Chris created a wide stone pathway that leads to the front door. It is lined with ‘Drops of Gold’ Japanese holly and a variety of columnar hornbeam trees to make the entrance more pronounced and easy to distinguish among the property’s many features.

While her husband passed away last year, joy lives on in the way the family relishes each aspect of the outdoor area from the pond, to the pool, to the plantings. “I get texts from her saying, I’m out in the garden enjoying it; thank you so much,” Chris says. “Chris, Katie, and Mary Jane were a dream to work with; I get to benefit from the time and effort they put into this,” the homeowner notes. As a legacy project, the impact of her husband’s effort radiates throughout the property. “He knew that I, too, would need these green pastures and still waters,” she says.

“Chris has a more-is-more philosophy when it comes to plants.”
—homeowner

The exterior brick is painted “Tapestry Beige” by Benjamin Moore.

Bursting with Color
Meandering around the exterior to the right of the front door is a metal trellis that was installed by the previous owners. Tangerine crossvine, an evergreen native vine with yellow blooms, crawls up the structure and can attach to the home without causing damage. The plantings below include sage, rudbeckia (also called black-eyed Susan), ‘Tropicanna’ canna lilies, and lantana.

“We have seven grandsons; it’s so good for their mental health and well-being for them to run wild here.”
—homeowner

Across the Pond
The rear elevation of the house looks out onto the pool area and a pond beyond. To the left of the main house is a small guesthouse for visitors, and the newly constructed pool house sits to the right. The pond and natural areas leave plenty of space to explore nature. “We wanted to be able to wander through the woods and the garden,” the owner says of the property. Because of the setting, Chris also considered wildlife in the scheme. “There are deer, geese, ducks, rabbits, you name it, so we created a plan that mixes in deer-deterrent selections like lantana and coneflowers,” he says.

Follow the Stones
A pathway of natural stones leads through blooming beds along the perimeter of the house. “We filled this with lots of ground cover and tons of plants to help keep the stones clean and free of dirt,” Chris says. “We don’t ever want to see mulch. It’s always my goal to cram and shove as many plants as possible,” he adds, noting that this practice also makes for easy maintenance. These plantings include sun coleus, rudbeckia, and herbs like creeping thyme and golden oregano. “The herbs give off a really pleasant scent when you walk through and lightly brush them,” he says.

A Space for All
The addition of a screened porch bumped out the side of the house to create an ideal place for an outdoor kitchen, a feature the couple enjoyed frequently at their previous residence. “Our boys love to cook. There’s always something on the smoker or grill or a fish fry,” the owner says. To the right of the kitchen, a large picture window gives a view of the property from the primary bedroom. “I like to sit at this window and take it all in,” she adds.

Containers like this large-scale concrete one are on a drip system for easy maintenance. The arborvitae and coral bells stay in place while Chris changes out the seasonal plantings to bring in a variety of hues. The exterior shutters are painted “Pigeon” by Farrow & Ball.

By the Pool
While the pool was existing, Chris highlighted it with beds that mimic what is seen around the home’s exterior. A pool house and spa were added and the hardscaping redone to coordinate with these new features. In the background, a portion of the home’s covered porch is outlined with ‘Lady Banks’ roses and crepe myrtles, which were already in place but fit perfectly with the colorful scheme. “I love to keep original plantings whenever possible,” Chris notes.

Planters along the covered porch’s edge are filled with low-maintenance ‘Drops of Gold’ Japanese holly and ‘Vera Jameson’ sedum that contrasts with purple coneflowers and catmint that also blooms a purplish blue in spring and summer.

Native coneflowers offer dramatic color with the added benefit of being deer-resistant. Chris notes they also make for great cut-flower arrangements.

Design Resources
Contractor (renovation) Mary Jane Herr, M.J. Herr, Inc. Exterior design (Renovation) Katie Rees, Katie Grace Designs Landscape design Chris Olsen, Botanica Gardens and Plantopia Outdoor furniture Katie Grace Designs Paint Benjamin Moore and Farrow & Ball