Featured Garden: Cotati, California
A Front & Backyard Landscape Designed Around Nature
This featured garden in Cotati, California involved a complete redesign and installation of both the front and backyard, transforming the property into a cohesive landscape inspired by the natural character of Sonoma County.
The defining feature of the project is a dry creek bed that begins in the front yard and meanders through the property into the backyard. Rather than treating the front and rear landscapes as separate spaces, the creek bed creates a continuous natural element that connects the entire property.
Large Sonoma Fieldstone boulders, mature trees, native and low-water plantings, and natural stone were incorporated throughout the design to create a landscape that feels established, relaxed, and connected to its surroundings.
A Complete Front & Backyard Redesign
One of the primary goals of this Cotati landscape was to create continuity.
Front yards and backyards are often designed independently, resulting in spaces that feel disconnected. For this project, we approached the property as one complete landscape.
Materials, plants, boulders, and the dry creek bed repeat throughout the property, creating a consistent visual language from the front yard through to the backyard.
The project included:
Complete front yard redesign and installation
Complete backyard redesign and installation
Custom dry creek bed
Large Sonoma Fieldstone boulders
Mature trees
Native and low-water plantings
Low-maintenance landscape design
Complete drip irrigation system
The result is a landscape that changes as you move through it while maintaining a strong connection between each space.
A Dry Creek Bed That Connects the Landscape
The dry creek bed is the centerpiece of the design.
Beginning in the front landscape, the creek bed follows a natural, meandering path through the property before continuing into the backyard.
Its curved form creates movement and encourages the eye to travel through the garden. Instead of using straight lines or rigid transitions, the creek bed takes inspiration from the way water naturally moves through the landscape.
Varying sizes of stone and carefully positioned boulders help create the appearance of a natural seasonal watercourse.
The creek bed isn’t simply an isolated landscape feature—it becomes the element that organizes and connects the entire garden.
Sonoma Fieldstone Boulders
Large Sonoma Fieldstone boulders were incorporated throughout the creek bed and surrounding planting areas.
Boulder placement is especially important when creating a naturalistic landscape. Rather than evenly spacing stones or placing them on top of the finished grade, we integrate boulders into the landscape so they appear grounded and established.
Some boulders anchor bends in the dry creek bed, while others emerge from planting areas and help define transitions throughout the garden.
Their natural texture and color reinforce the Sonoma County character of the landscape while providing year-round structure.
Mature Trees & Layered Planting
Trees provide scale, shade, structure, and a sense of permanence within a garden.
For this Cotati project, mature trees were incorporated to give the newly installed landscape a more established feeling from the beginning.
Below and around the trees, layers of shrubs, grasses, perennials, groundcovers, and native plants create changing heights and textures.
The planting was intentionally arranged to complement the dry creek bed and boulders rather than overpower them.
As the landscape matures, plants will continue to soften the stone and create an increasingly natural transition between the creek bed, trees, and surrounding garden.
Native & Low-Water Landscaping
Plant selection was guided by the Sonoma County climate and the goal of creating a landscape that could provide year-round interest without excessive water use or maintenance.
Native and climate-appropriate plants were selected for their texture, form, seasonal character, and ability to work within a water-conscious landscape.
Instead of relying on large expanses of traditional lawn or high-water planting, the garden uses carefully arranged plant groupings, natural stone, and open areas to create visual interest.
This approach allows the landscape to feel full and inviting without requiring every area to be densely planted.
Low-Water Drip Irrigation
The entire planting design is supported by a drip irrigation system designed for efficient water use and long-term plant health.
Drip irrigation delivers water directly to planting areas, helping reduce unnecessary overspray and evaporation compared with conventional spray irrigation in appropriate applications.
Different areas of the landscape can be irrigated according to plant requirements, exposure, and site conditions.
The irrigation system was designed as part of the landscape—not as an afterthought—allowing the planting and water-management strategy to work together from the beginning.
Designing for Lower Maintenance
Low maintenance doesn’t have to mean minimal design.
This Cotati garden was designed to reduce unnecessary maintenance while still providing the texture and seasonal interest of a carefully planted landscape.
The combination of:
Native and low-water plants + drip irrigation + natural stone + boulders + thoughtful plant spacing
creates a landscape intended to become more established and integrated as it matures.
Large boulders and the dry creek bed provide permanent structure, while trees and plants soften the landscape over time.
Designing With Nature
This project represents one of the principles that guides our work at Moonlight Landscapes: work with the property rather than against it.
Natural landscapes aren’t perfectly straight or symmetrical.
Creeks bend. Boulders occur in irregular groupings. Plants overlap. Trees create layers of height and shade.
By borrowing these characteristics from nature, we can create new landscapes that feel more connected to their surroundings.
The dry creek bed is a perfect example. Instead of being confined to one small section of the garden, it moves through the property, connecting spaces and creating a sense of discovery along the way.
A Landscape That Will Continue to Evolve
A newly installed garden is only the beginning.
As the mature trees establish, native plants fill in, grasses soften the edges of the stone, and groundcovers move toward the dry creek bed, the landscape will continue to change.
The Sonoma Fieldstone boulders and creek bed provide the permanent framework. The plants bring that framework to life.
Over time, the distinction between what was constructed and what feels naturally occurring becomes increasingly subtle.
That’s exactly what we wanted this landscape to achieve.
Landscape Design + Installation in Cotati, CA
This featured Cotati garden demonstrates how a complete front and backyard redesign can create one cohesive outdoor environment.
By combining a meandering dry creek bed, large Sonoma Fieldstone boulders, mature trees, native and low-water plantings, and efficient drip irrigation, Moonlight Landscapes transformed the property into a landscape inspired by the natural beauty of Northern California.
The result is a garden designed to be beautiful, water-conscious, lower maintenance, and increasingly natural as it matures.
Planning a front yard, backyard, or complete landscape renovation in Cotati or Sonoma County? Contact Moonlight Landscapes to begin designing a landscape that works with your property and the way you want to live outdoors.
Moonlight Landscapes | Landscape Design + Build | Cotati & Sonoma County, California
