No matter what Brad Evans and Bob O’Shea do, the view from their backyard will overshadow their garden, and they are fine with that.
Their home sits on a steep hillside in Crafton, and the view from the back deck that overlooks Chartiers Creek Valley and Thornburg across the way is breathtaking. In a city full of overlooks and panoramic views, this has to be one of the most lovely, and it was the reason they decided to move into the home in 1992.
“We were sold on the gorgeous view and the potential to create a very private oasis in the back,” said Bob O’Shea, who admits his husband has the greener thumb.
Together they are the winners of the large garden, fall/year-round category of the Great Gardens Contest, which is organized and judged by members of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Pittsburgh Botanic Garden.
“One of the first things we did was plant a row of hemlocks along our upper property line, which have grown in to create total privacy in the back,” he said.
The site is difficult, to say the least.
“Our terrain and steep hillsides, with a lot of soft, slippy red clay, was a real challenge. When we first moved here the ground was mostly bare and was difficult to walk on. We quickly planted a lot of ground covers to stabilize the ground and make it easier to climb, though it's still a challenge,” he said.
They have installed fencing, necessary because of the steep hillside and deer, and have also constructed a 45-foot-long retaining wall along the upper side of the property. There they have planted roses, hosta, lilies and hydrangea.
Mr. Evans built a small waterfall there, and the men also make plentiful use of containers utilizing common annuals and a large selection of tropical plants, many of which they overwinter in the basement of their rental property next door.
The property is used to the fullest extent. Areas around the driveway in the front are planted with vegetables, although they say the raccoon gets most of the corn. Ornamental grasses are in abundance and the fence in the front parking area has a fountain on it, around which is planted winter daisies, red chrysanthemums, lantana, pansies and red fountain grass.
A long path leads to the back of the property, and it too is planted. Favorite plants include tri-color beech, golden chain tree (Laburnum anagyroides), weeping purple beech and tropical sago palms.
No matter how much time the men spend on the front of the property, visitors naturally gravitate towardsthe back. That view is hypnotic. In fact, the hillside which overlooks the plain below is so steep that “our yard and garden is ... literally in and among the tree tops,” Mr. O’Shea says.
The couple often have to top the trees growing close the deck because they obstruct the view.
No matter what season you visit, there is something going on in the closed Crafton Golf Course below. Mr. O’Shea says in the winter it looks like a snow-covered Christmas scene complete with trains, as railroad tracks skirt the far edge of the acreage, and in the fall, the colors are brilliant. It’s also a great place to watch birds, and one spring he got quite the scare when he looked out to see a group of turkey buzzards perched in the bare tree tops that are level with their home.
Luckily, the view will remain in perpetuity because the former privately owned golf course was purchased by Thornburg in 2005. The 62-acre plot that the men look down on is now known as the Thornburg Conservation Park.
Mr. O’Shea and Mr. Evans have transformed what most would consider an impossible place to garden into a personal and inviting area, with the added bonus of a drop-dead view. “We would like people to know that with a little imagination, some work, love and time, they can turn most any space into a wonderful, beautiful place of their own to enjoy.”
Post-Gazette garden editor Susan Banks: sbanks@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1516.
First Published: October 28, 2016, 2:46 p.m.
