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One neighborhood, two very different gardens and landscapes: Here’s how a single designer achieved appropriate—and gorgeous—looks for each unique home.
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Situated on 350 acres west of Del. 1, Kings Creek hardly looks like a beach neighborhood, despite its Rehoboth address and its proximity to the bay. The spacious houses would look at home in a tony Connecticut suburb, or the rolling hills around Atlanta, or maybe on a Kentucky horse farm.
Credit the diversity of styles. A Colonial might stand next to an updated farmhouse. A contemporary might sit next to a Cape Cod. No two are seemingly alike, and neither are the landscape designs.
Rick Cordrey is partially responsible for the floral diversity. Cordrey and his wife, Valery, own East Coast Garden Center and RSC Landscaping in Millsboro, which have between 40 and 50 Kings Creek homeowners as clients.
Though the designs differ, Rick Cordrey’s touch is frequently evident. He’s fond of plants that tweak the traditional. Consider Knock Out roses, touted as being the most disease-resistant roses on the market, and Encore azaleas, which bloom in spring, summer and fall.
A look at the home of David and Denise Sills and the home of Marvin Rothman demonstrates Cordrey’s ability to create a distinctive design for each while integrating common trends.
Color, for instance, is abundant at both properties. At their New England-style cedar shake home, the Sillses put their passion front and center. In spring, Cordrey planted about 1,600 New Guinea impatiens in one-gallon pots in front of the home. Installation, which requires a gas-powered auger, must be completed before the Preakness race in May, when the Sillses host an annual party. Come fall, Cordrey replaces the plants with cool-weather combinations such as pansies, ornamental cabbage and kale.
It’s clearly not an inexpensive endeavor, but Denise Sills says the rewards are worth the investment. “We get so many compliments,” she says. “And if we don’t do it, we wonder, ‘What’s wrong with the house?’” Indeed, the river of color suits the stately home, which is distinguished by a turret, peaked roofs and a balcony atop the railed porch.
For the warm weather, Cordrey chose a type of New Guinea impatiens that can withstand sun along with the usual shade. Sills leaves the color choice up to Cordrey, who leans toward purple and pink. But Sills, who loves the Fourth of July, one year requested a small bed of red, white and blue wave petunias.
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