Landscaping and hardscaping, Warsaw and Douro-Dummer

Landscaping in Warsaw and Douro-Dummer

Patios, walkways, retaining walls and outdoor living for homes around Warsaw and cottages on Stony, Clear and Katchewanooka Lake. Send the form and an owner calls you back today.

  • ✓Same-day callback from an owner
  • ✓Design meeting on your property, written quote after it
  • ✓One crew, owners on site every day of the build
Get your free landscaping consult
A few quick questions. An owner calls you back today.
Prefer to talk? Call (705) 208-7121
32 reviews, most of them for yards and stone work
Owners on site
One or both owners on site every day of the build
Our own machines
Excavators and skid steers we own, so the base and the stone are one crew's work
Locates before every dig
Ontario Dig Authority locate filed before the machine arrives

Landscaping in Warsaw and Douro-Dummer

Landscaping in Douro-Dummer runs from the limestone plain around Warsaw to cottage shorelines on Stony, Clear and Katchewanooka Lake. The whole township is a site plan control area, and on the Trent-Severn lakes a dock, boathouse or retaining wall at the water gets its Parks Canada permit before the Township's building permit. Inland, near the Indian River, the ground opens into bare limestone with potholes and kettles.

Patios, walkways and walls

The stone you walk on every day, laid on a base built to stay flat through a Kawartha winter.

  • ✓Natural stone, flagstone and interlock patios
  • ✓Walkways, front entrances and stone steps
  • ✓Armour stone and block retaining walls
  • ✓Pool surrounds
  • ✓Grading, drainage and sod to finish the yard

Outdoor living

The pieces that turn a yard into the place everyone ends up on a summer night.

  • ✓Fire pits and seating areas
  • ✓Pergolas and privacy screens
  • ✓Outdoor kitchens
  • ✓Decks and fences

We run our own excavators and skid steers, so the base under your patio is dug, graded and compacted by the same crew that lays the stone. The base is what decides whether a patio stays flat through freeze and thaw.

Walls that need them get structural drawings and a permit before we dig, and every build ends with a walk-through and a written warranty contract.

Building yards in Warsaw and Douro-Dummer: what changes here

Permits and locates

Otonabee Conservation regulates wetlands plus a 30 metre buffer, watercourses, and floodplains plus 15 metres under Ontario Regulation 41/24, and its permit comes before grading or fill there. Douro-Dummer also lists Ministry of Natural Resources approval for any retaining wall in a regulated area near water or natural features. For anything that connects to a Trent-Severn lake, the Parks Canada permit comes first. Before any digging, the locate request goes to the Ontario Dig Authority (formerly Ontario One Call).

The ground you are on

Otonabee Conservation describes the Warsaw Caves land in the Indian River valley as open limestone plains with potholes, kettles and a disappearing river you can hear beneath the rocks. Elsewhere, the county soil survey maps poorly drained Harney soils on near-level morainal plains beside wet organic ground in Dummer and Douro. Thin soil over limestone and wet flats both call for a patio base and drainage built for them, which we size on site.

The rule that shapes the build

Site plan control. By-law 2025-09 makes the entire township a site plan control area, and where development goes through site plan approval, the Township evaluates walkways, parking areas, landscaping and exterior design as part of it. We draw the yard plan to suit that review, so it is approved along with the building.

Communities we cover from here

WarsawDouroHall's GlenCentre DummerSouth DummerCottesloeClarinaCrowe's LandingMcCracken's LandingGilchrist BayJuniper IslandGalesburgDonwood

How landscaping in Warsaw and Douro-Dummer works, in four steps

1
First visit
We walk the property with you, talk through what you want, and give you rough numbers so you know where the project sits.
2
Design and quote
Our designer meets you on site and works through every detail. A 10% deposit locks the scope and materials, and the final quote is the exact price for the job.
3
Drawings and permits
Structural drawings where a wall needs them, permits filed, the schedule set.
4
Build and warranty
One or both owners on site every day. A final walk-through, the final invoice and a written warranty contract.

Recent builds

Stone fire pit and seating built by Thor Construction
Pergola and privacy screen built by Thor Construction
Front entrance stone work by Thor Construction

What our customers say

★★★★★

“Thor Construction company did some hardscaping for us in our backyard around the pool. Right from the start they were responsive, they worked with us on a design that was functional for the space and stayed within the agreed budget. Their work was fabulous!”

D 1072
Pool surround, hardscaping · Google review
★★★★★

“Thor construction company did a great job on my landscaping for my new home, great design idea for my garden and driveway and walkway plus patio thanks for the great job, we highly recommend them”

Jeremy Thorsen
New home, full landscaping · Google review
★★★★★

“Can't say enough about Thor Construction Company. They transformed my backyard space into a perfect little getaway; can't wait to host this summer! They were professional, hardworking bunch and I would recommend you chose this company for your backyard or landscaping needs...big or small!”

Matthew Tynkaluk
Backyard rebuild · Google review

Landscaping in Warsaw and Douro-Dummer: your questions answered

Can I clear the cattails for a swimming area?

Not on a Trent-Severn lake. Parks Canada does not permit removing emergent plants such as cattail, bulrush, pickerel weed or pond lily, and submerged plants need its permit and review. We design the beach access around what is allowed.

Do I need Parks Canada for a wall at the water?

Yes, on Stony, Clear and Katchewanooka Lake. The Township asks for the Parks Canada permit on any project that connects to the Trent-Severn, docks, boathouses and retaining walls included, before it issues its own building permit.

Who decides whether my yard is in a regulated area?

Otonabee Conservation, through its regulated area mapping and a pre-consultation inquiry. Wetlands carry a 30 metre buffer and floodplains 15 metres. We file the inquiry with the design so the answer comes before the stone is ordered.

What do you build?

Patios and walkways in natural stone, flagstone and interlock, armour stone and block retaining walls, stone steps, pool surrounds, fire pits, pergolas and privacy screens, outdoor kitchens, decks and fences, plus the grading and sod that finish it.

How does pricing work?

The first visit gives you rough numbers. After the design meeting you get a detailed quote, a 10% deposit locks the scope and materials, and the final quote is the exact price for the job.

What size of project do you take on?

Most builds start around $20,000, from a patio and wall up to a full backyard at $150,000 and more.

When can you start?

One crew builds a limited number of yards each season. Designs signed over the winter are scheduled first for spring.

Do I need a permit?

Most patios and garden walls do not. A retaining wall over 1 metre of exposed height next to public property, access to a building, or private property the public is admitted to is a designated structure under the Ontario Building Code: it is designed to the Code's structural rules and takes a building permit, and we arrange the engineering. Anything close to the water needs the conservation authority's permit first. We check at the first visit.

Who is on site?

One or both of the owners, every day of the build, managing the job and keeping you and your neighbours in the loop.

Other areas and services

Every page has the local permit office, the ground and the rules for that area.

Ready to plan your build, Warsaw and Douro-Dummer?

Send the form and an owner calls you back today. Or call now and talk to the person who will dig the job.

Get your free landscaping consult
A few quick questions. An owner calls you back today.
Prefer to talk? Call (705) 208-7121
Thor Construction Company
Bobcaygeon, Ontario · Serving Central Ontario, north of the GTA
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