What the Owners Were Left With

New builds often finish at the back door. The house was complete and the driveway poured, but everything beyond the concrete was untouched ground: compacted fill, weeds, broken bricks, offcuts and old service pipes still sticking out where the trades had finished.

The side passages were bare dirt that turned to mud after rain, and a large shrub had taken over one corner against the fence.

Stage 1 — Clearing and Removal

The first job was to strip the site back to clean ground. We cleared the weeds and self-seeded growth, dug out roots, and removed the leftover building waste from the whole block, including the narrow side passage that machinery couldn't reach.

Clearing properly at this stage matters. Turf laid over buried rubble and roots never roots evenly, and weeds come straight back through it.

Stage 2 — Rendered Block Walls to the Boundaries

The yard sat higher than the neighbouring ground, so the soil needed holding back along the fence lines. We laid a core-filled concrete block wall the length of the boundary, then rendered it in a clean white finish to match the house.

The same detail carries through to the front of the property, where low rendered walls frame the lawn and the entry path. Instead of a plain fence line, the garden now has a crisp edge that looks like part of the build.

If you need something similar on a sloping block, see our retaining wall options, from concrete sleeper to block and timber.

Stage 3 — Soil Preparation and Garden Edging

Once the walls cured, we brought in fresh soil, spread and levelled it, and set the garden edging that separates lawn from garden bed. The curved steel edge against the concrete path was shaped on site so the lawn follows the line of the paving rather than cutting across it.

Good preparation is the part nobody sees in the finished photos, but it is what decides whether the lawn stays flat and drains properly.

Stage 4 — New Turf

With the levels right, the turf went down across the front and rear lawns, butted tight, rolled and watered in. A narrow garden bed was left along the base of the rendered wall for planting, with the soil sitting below the render line so it stays clean.

Stage 5 — Pebble Side Paths

Both side passages were finished in river pebble over a prepared base, with stepping pads set into the stone at the access points. Pebble suits these narrow, shaded strips down the side of a house: it drains after storms, doesn't hold mud, and there is no lawn to mow in a space too tight to use a mower.

The Finished Property

From the street, the low rendered walls, level lawn and clean concrete now read as one finished design rather than a house waiting for its garden. At the back, the family has a usable lawn edged by a white wall, and side passages that stay clean in wet weather.

• Full site clear-out and rubbish removal
• Core-filled concrete block walls, rendered white
• Low rendered front walls and letterbox pier
• Imported soil, levelling and steel garden edging
• New turf to front and rear lawns
• River pebble side paths with stepping pads

Questions About New-Build Landscaping

How long after a new build should landscaping start?

As soon as the trades are finished and there is clear access. Leaving bare ground through a wet season means erosion, weeds and more clean-up later.

Do rendered block walls need council approval?

Low garden and boundary walls usually don't, but height, position and any retaining above a certain depth can change that. We'll tell you when a wall needs engineering or approval before we quote it.

Why pebble instead of concrete down the side of a house?

Pebble is cheaper than concrete, lets water soak away instead of running toward the house, and can be lifted if a plumber ever needs to reach the pipes underneath.

Do you work in Hunters Hill and the surrounding suburbs?

Yes. We landscape homes in Hunters Hill, Gladesville, Woolwich, Henley, Huntleys Point and Ryde, and across the rest of Sydney.

Home & Garden Group provides landscaping, turf, rendered block walls, gravel and pebble paths, fencing and complete outdoor transformations in Hunters Hill, Gladesville, Woolwich, Ryde and suburbs across Sydney.