Laurel Street Modern Canopy

A sleek pool garden framed by palms, hollies, and magnolias on Laurel Street.

Contemporary swimming pool framed by palms and layered planting in an Uptown New Orleans garden

The pool sits beneath a canopy of palms and mature trees, with layered planting softening the transition from water to home.

Zoysia lawn and shaded seating surrounded by layered planting in an Uptown New Orleans pool garden

An open stretch of lawn gives the planting room to breathe, while the shaded seating area creates a quiet place to take in the garden.

Bird of paradise, ferns, and seasonal flowers layered beneath trees in an Uptown New Orleans pool garden

Strong leaves rise through the middle of the bed, while ferns and seasonal color fill the lower layer with texture and movement.

Outdoor seating beside a round water feature in a modern Uptown New Orleans garden

A pair of chairs turns the water feature into a place to pause, with palms and layered planting enclosing the space without closing it in.

Round bubbling water feature surrounded by palms and tropical planting in an Uptown New Orleans garden

A simple round basin brings sound and reflection into the garden, adding movement at ground level beneath the taller canopy.

Zoysia lawn, water feature, and shaded seating within a modern Uptown New Orleans pool garden

Lawn opens the center of the garden, while the water feature, seating, and layered planting create a quieter destination beneath the trees.

Zoysia lawn and layered tropical planting beside a modern garden shed in Uptown New Orleans

Even the garden’s most practical corner stays connected to the larger design through clean lawn lines and layers of green.

Open Zoysia lawn with garden seating beneath palms and mature trees in Uptown New Orleans

The canopy provides the shade, the lawn keeps the view open, and a simple chair makes the garden feel ready to be used.

Shaded porch seating overlooking a modern pool garden in Uptown New Orleans

From the porch, the pool and garden become one long view framed by mature trees, palms, and layered foliage.

Landscape Architect:

Kim Alvarez, BLA

Modern architecture knows how to hold a line and at this Uptown, Laurel Street address, the garden needed to soften those lines without hiding them. For this modern pool garden, landscape architect Kim Alvarez worked from the canopy down, using palms, hollies, and magnolias to frame the property before filling in the layers beneath them.

Contemporary Pool Landscape Design in Uptown New Orleans

Sabal palms and Mediterranean fan palms establish the garden’s height and give the pool a tropical frame. Oakland and Savannah hollies add evergreen structure, while Little Gem magnolias bring broad leaves and a softer outline near the architecture. Graceful bamboo creates movement and screening without adding weight. Together, these larger forms shape the view from the house, pool, and driveway.

Below the canopy, sasanquas and gardenias bring seasonal flowers and fragrance. Rhaphis palms, bird of paradise, philodendron, variegated ginger, elephant ear, and fatsia build the lush middle layer. Meanwhile, Soft Caress mahonia, ligularia, holly leaf fern, foxtail fern, Aztec grass, ajuga, and dwarf mondo grass carry texture down to the ground. Black-eyed Susans and salvia add brighter moments of color without changing the garden’s calm rhythm.

After sunset, low-voltage landscape lighting reveals that structure in another way. Fixtures quietly highlight palm trunks, magnolia foliage, and layered planting while making the paths and poolside areas easier to move through. The lighting does not compete with the garden; it lets the canopy remain part of the view into the evening.

Our Landscape architecture firm and crews carried this residential pool landscape in Uptown New Orleans through bed preparation, planting, Zoysia lawn, and irrigation. Ongoing maintenance keeps the stronger forms defined while allowing the softer planting to settle in naturally.

The completed project results in a contemporary New Orleans pool garden that feels clean but never bare—framed from above, layered below, and designed to hold its character from morning through night.

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