About The Author

Todd Thomasson

Todd Thomasson, founder of Rock Water Farm Landscapes & Hardscapes, grew up on his family’s working beef cattle farm in Danville, where he learned the value of hard work from his parents. In 2005, he combined that work ethic with his Landscape & Turf Management degree from Virginia Tech to establish the company, serving as the lead stone mason and landscape designer, creating exceptional outdoor spaces with craftsmanship and attention to detail.

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pool, patio, and hot tub installed at home in Ashburn, VA

Considering the Cost of Installing a Pool in Ashburn, Aldie, and Leesburg, VA

Posted On: January 24,2019 By: Todd Thomasson

A pool is one of the most exciting features that you can add to your backyard in Northern Virginia. It has the power to transform your property from dry and drab to one of the coolest and most refreshing places in your world.

When you add a pool to your yard, you go from having a backyard where there likely isn’t that much to do to an environment where you’re going to want to spend all of your free time. Whether it’s lounging poolside reading a good book, sipping on a drink, taking a dip on a hot day, enjoying family time, or even cooking up some burgers in the adjacent outdoor kitchen then dining al fresco, you’ve now got a full weekend’s worth of enjoyment waiting for you.

landscape design with pool, fireplace, pavilion, and patio in Warrenton, VA

Warrenton, VA Landscape Design Case Study: Pool, Fireplace, Pavilion, Patio, and More

Posted On: December 19,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

Good design is not just about beauty and aesthetics but also about functionality. In fact, when it comes to an extensive outdoor living design, functionality should always come first. After all, if the space doesn’t meet the your needs, you aren’t going to use it.

In this particular landscape design in Warrenton, VA, there were some very specific needs that would have to be met in order to make the space usable. Because there were family members with ability challenges who visited the home often, it was essential that the entire space was built on one single level. This would make the space usable by everyone.

pool design and backyard patio in Great Falls VA

Great Falls, VA Landscape Design Case Study: The Perfect Mix of Stone, Plants, and Lighting

Posted On: November 13,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

Spending time as a family outdoors can be made all that much more enjoyable with an outdoor living area offering a variety of amenities. But backyard that is outdated and starting to deteriorate can detract from not only the aesthetics but the overall functionality of the space.

Ashburn, VA Landscape Design Case Study: Adding 3 Outdoor Living Rooms

Posted On: October 30,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

When you’ve invested in a landscape project, you want to see the final result come together the way you envisioned. The last thing that you want is to be left with an outdoor living space that’s not only not what you wanted, but one that has a lot of mistakes.

Unfortunately, that was the case for this landscape design in Ashburn, VA. When we were brought in, the Czajkowski family expressed to us that they were incredibly unhappy with the screened-in porch and deck they had gotten built by another contractor. There were quite a few problems with its design and construction.

Fall Landscaping Checklist For Northern Virginia: Tips to Fall Cleanup and Reduce Costs

Posted On: September 21,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

Come fall, it’s easy for any landscape to start looking a bit unkempt. Your yard may appear littered with fallen leaves and branches, have messy ornamental grasses or shrubs that look overgrown, or have plant beds that could use a fresh coat of mulch.

Even so, as the weather cools off and you’re probably spending less time in your yard, you might have thought about just putting off any landscaping until the spring.

Unfortunately, failing to perform some fall landscaping cleanup can leave you with such a mess in the spring that it’s much more time-consuming and costly when you do get around to landscaping.

Beautiful house and landscape with walkway in Leesburg, VA

Leesburg, VA Landscape Design Case Study: Using Stone, Brick & More for Great Curb Appeal

Posted On: September 17,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

A front yard should do a lot of things. For one, it should make friends and family feel welcome. It should help make your home look inviting and should help usher visitors from the driveway to the front door with ease.

But it should also “wow.” It ought to make passersby do a double take and add to the overall value of your home. It should make your home the most stunning on the block rather than look like every other cookie-cutter front yard around.

Deck, patio, outdoor kitchen aerial photo Haymarket, VA

Haymarket, VA Landscape Design Case Study: Outdoor Kitchen, Deck, Weather-Defying Patio & More

Posted On: August 20,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

Work hard, play hard is the mantra of this hard-working family who enjoys spending their weekends entertaining guests with some good food and drinks. It wouldn’t be uncommon to find 30 or 40 guests over on any given weekend—oftentimes friends from the close-knit neighborhood. On top of that, these homeowners love hosting their annual family reunion of 100+ guests each year.

How Long Does it Take to Build a Pool: Timeline from Design to Completion in 6 Steps

Posted On: July 23,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

Once you’ve made the decision that you’re going to get a pool, chances are you want to have it completed as soon as possible. Whether you’ve been waiting a long time for this pool or not, you’re excited, and you don’t want to just be imagining jumping in—you want to actually do it.

Despite your eagerness, you also know that rushing a job as important as your dream pool could lead to mistakes. Details may be overlooked that could impact the entire pool area for years to come. You would never want to see quality sacrificed just because the pool designer is in hurry.

Pool and hot tub with poolside plantings

Landscape Design Ideas for Your Pool: Plants for Poolside Perfection

Posted On: May 14,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

Nothing quite says “backyard escape” like a pool. Chances are when you picture your dream pool, you likely imagine a backyard oasis. What makes that possible is not only the pool itself but the landscaping around your pool. Landscaping the pool area can completely transform the space into the retreat you’ve always wanted.

While the right landscape design poolside can make a big splash, the wrong choices can have just the opposite effect. Instead of enjoying your pool retreat you might be spending extra time cleaning up the high-maintenance or messy trees and shrubs that you chose. Or maybe you’re feeling exposed to all of the neighbors’ prying eyes since you didn’t choose the best privacy screening plants.

Remodeling contractors and landscape design in Ashburn, VA

Landscape Design and Remodelling Contractors in Ashburn, VA: Getting the Best of Both Worlds?

Posted On: February 20,2018 By: Todd Thomasson

When you have your home remodeled, you expect everything to look and function its best. But if you neglect the surrounding outdoor areas, there can be problems. For instance, imagine a drainage nightmare that was caused by an uncorrected grading problem. Now you have a mini mudslide occurring on your property every time it rains and that mud is getting tracked into your brand-new addition.

Or what about having a small patio outside of your newly remodeled basement that isn’t even big enough to set your furniture on. You walk out from your beautiful new space onto a nonfunctional patio that really serves no purpose.

These are just a couple of the frustrations that we’ve witnessed from homeowners who have had a beautiful home remodeled but did not involve a landscape design professional on the project.