Stone terraces and steps stepping down a lawn behind a brick house, path lights and a fire table glowing at dusk

Backyards builtfor Tennessee clay,planted to last.

Terraces, retaining walls, outdoor kitchens and planting for Franklin, Brentwood, Leiper’s Fork and Green Hills. Your designer plans it on site with you, and our hardscape carries a 5-year warranty.

Planned on site with you. Hardscape warrantied for 5 years.

4.9 on Google
Franklin crews since 2012
(615) 555-0172

What are we building?

Takes a minute. A designer comes to you.

2012Graham Ashby’s first truck rolls out of Franklin

On siteYour plan is sketched at your own table

5 yearsWarranty on every hardscape build

1 yearGuarantee on every plant we set

Since 2012Owner-run, out of Franklin
4.9 ★★★★★Google rating
On-site designPlanned with you, at your place
5-yearHardscape warranty
Our own crewsNo subcontracted installs

Nine things we plan and build

Most yards need three or four of these working together. The same designer plans all of them, and the same crew lead sees them through.

01Design-buildPlanned at your table, built by our own crews

02Patios & hardscapeTerraces, paths and steps in paver, flagstone or bluestone

03Outdoor kitchensGrill stations, counters and bar seating for a crowd

04Fire pits & fireplacesWood or gas, from a simple ring to a full chimney

05Pergolas & shade structuresCedar and steel shade over the places you sit

06Retaining walls & gradingTurn a hillside into level ground that stays put

07Drainage & runoffWater off the lawn and away from the house

08Planting & lightingBeds, trees and low-voltage lights for after dark

09Seasonal careMowing, pruning and bed care after the build

How we design on site

No studio drawings mailed weeks later. The designer comes to you, walks the yard, and puts the first plan on paper before leaving.

The visit takes about an hour. We start at the back door and walk the whole lot: where the ground falls, where the downspouts dump, which beds stay wet in March and which bake in August. A soil probe tells us how deep the clay starts.

Then we sit down at your table. The designer sketches the layout to scale on a gridded sheet while you talk through it, moving the terrace, the wall or the fire pit until it fits how you actually use the yard.

A week later you get the finished plan and a material board with the real stone, brick, edging and plant picks, plus one fixed price. Graham or Luis looks over every plan before it reaches you.

A Thornbury designer going over a scaled plan with homeowners at their patio table — Plans start at the client’s own table, not in an office

Before & after

Two recent yards near Franklin. Slide across to compare, then switch projects.

BeforeAfter

Slide to compare

Terrace and fire ringBrentwood · brick ranch, built 1994

Old concrete pad broken out and hauled off. New paver terrace with a contrasting edge, a round stone fire ring, low path lights and fresh beds.

On site: Ten working days
Photo: Early evening

Sample-site photos, for illustration.

From first walk to first fire

Step 1 of 4

Walk the yard

A designer spends about an hour with you on site, reading the slope, the soil and the sun, and hearing what you want the yard to do. No charge for this first visit.

About an hourNo charge

Plan at your table

The layout gets sketched to scale while you watch and weigh in. A week later the finished plan arrives with a material board of real samples.

Drawn to scaleReal samples

Fixed price

Move things around until it suits you and your budget. Then we send one fixed price listing every material and quantity, so you know what you are paying for.

Changes welcomeEvery quantity listed

Build and hand-over

One crew lead stays with your job from first stake to last plant, and you get a photo update every Friday. Hardscape is warrantied for 5 years and plants are guaranteed for 1.

One crew lead5-year warranty

2012

One truck, one mower and a lot of borrowed tools.

Graham Ashby still walks most new yards himself.

He started out mowing and fixing washed-out beds around Franklin. Clients kept asking for walls and patios, so he hired masons, then a designer. Today the company has its own designers and install crews, a nursery yard and a barn office, and Luis keeps every job on schedule.

Graham AshbyFounder, walks new yards

LuisProject manager, checks every job

The Thornbury team in front of the barn office, nursery yard and two branded trucks — The crew outside the barn office in Franklin

2012

First truck, first clients on the west side of Franklin.

2016

Leased the old barn and nursery yard; first full masonry crew.

2019

Hardscape warranty raised to 5 years and seasonal care plans added.

Today

Two install crews and a care crew, Franklin to Columbia.

Dining table under a cedar pergola on a stone terrace — Rated 4.9 on Google

Our back lawn used to drain like a bathtub. Thornbury fixed the grade first, then laid the terrace and new sod, and it matches the plan we signed off on at our own table. Same crew every morning, and they swept up before they left.
Marisol T.Terrace and sod · Google review

Nobody could use our hillside. Graham sketched a terrace and a low wall right there on the patio, Luis ran the job, and the photos came every Friday. Three weeks later we were sitting around the fire.
Dev and Hannah R.Terrace, wall and fire pit · Google review

01 / 02

Close enough to stop by when it rains.

Our nursery yard and barn office are in Franklin. Just past these towns? Call, and we will give you a straight answer.

Barn officeTowns we cover

Stone steps and planted terraces lit at dusk in front of a stone house — Steps, walls and path lights, planned on a design walk

The design walk

Start with the yard you have.

Choose what is on your list. A designer walks the property with you, sketches it to scale and gives you one fixed price. The first visit is free.

Plan my design walk

Prefer the phone?(615) 555-0172

Notes from the yard

Plain answers on prices, frost and soggy lawns, written by the people who build here.

PricingSept 30, 2026

What a patio, a wall or a kitchen really costs in Williamson County

LightingMay 29, 2026

Warm, low and few: how we place landscape lights

DrainageJune 30, 2026

Why your lawn stays soggy three days after a storm

Before you call

Is the first visit free?

Yes. A designer walks the yard with you at no charge. If you want a scaled plan and material board after that, we quote the design work at the visit.

How will I know what it will look like?

You get a scaled plan sketched with you on site and a material board with real samples, and we can send you to a finished yard nearby. Holding the actual stone next to your brick tells you more than any picture on a screen.

What do projects usually cost?

Most paver patios land between $18,000 and $45,000, retaining walls between $12,000 and $60,000 and outdoor kitchens between $25,000 and $80,000. Your fixed price comes with the plan.

Why does clay matter so much?

Tennessee clay swells after rain, shrinks in a dry August and lifts in a hard freeze. We size the stone base to the soil, give every hard surface a way to shed water, and dig planting holes wide instead of deep so roots do not sit in a clay bowl.

What is covered after the build?

Hardscape carries a 5-year warranty and plants a 1-year guarantee. A seasonal care plan keeps the beds, lawn and lights in shape, done by a crew that knows your yard.

Have your yard planned on site.