THIRD PLACE Shelley & John Bennett turned a challenging hillside into a year-round garden that adds immeasurably to the enjoyment of their Redmond home.

They receive a $500 cash award in addition to the $100 gift certificate awarded by Swanson's Nursery last summer for being among the top 15 contestants.

The Bennetts were inspired to enter the competition after reading the headline over a Pacific Northwest magazine contest description that read, "Does your soil have soul?"

Who says planters have to be sweet? This surprising face in the rockery could serve as a reminder that surprises await anyone who has a horticultural bent.

"I thought, `Wow, they care about that,' " Shelley says. "It's fun to share, to get others interested."

Neighbors in their Redmond subdivision sometimes cruise by and admire the small rockery, a bamboo fence (John's handiwork), maples, rhododendrons and flax by the driveway. Hungry for ideas, some always ask to see what's behind the enticing handmade gate (also John's creation) that opens to the large private garden behind the house.

The Bennetts explain how they smashed up the concrete-slab patio off the living room and put down large flagstones. Over the sound of a waterfall they point to a terraced hillside made soft with small trees, ornamental grasses, perennials and ground covers. The steep lot has been a challenge to tame. The average home project seems less daunting after such a tour.

Stone steps up the steep back lot lead past a Japanese garden lantern to a level seating area. A bonsai collection and carefully pruned pines are part of the peaceful atmosphere.

Stone pavers lead up the hill from the north end of the patio. The path continues to the top of the spacious lot and dead-ends at a pump house disguised with fencing material. Along the way are scattered plantings of perennials, with salvia, yarrow, black-eyed Susan and agapanthus to brighten summer days. Underfoot are purple-flowering thyme, kinnikinnick, cotoneaster and a complement of other ground covers. Birds feast on elderberries. Viburnum bodnantense adds floral color in the winter. Bamboo in pots sing in the wind.

Every west-facing window in the two-story house offers a clear view of the garden with its various terraces. Behind the Bennetts' back fence is a greenbelt with large fir trees. In summer the plantings convey a sense of both newness and promise; the hillside will look quite different when the trees and shrubs mature.

A splashy waterway above the patio rushes down through boulders before linking to a quiet, fish-filled pool. Nearby are bamboo, decorative grasses and carefully pruned conifers. The sound of falling water is emphasized by the bowl-like configuration.

John Bennett's handmade gate draws visitors down a path toward the main hillside garden behind their Redmond home.

A rockery and water feature were the logical starting point for their endeavor, especially since behind-the-house access would be tricky even before landscaping complicated the issue. The project was completed by a contractor early on, before the Bennetts had a clear sense of how they wanted the entire garden to come together. If they were to do this phase over, they say, they probably would scale down and request a subtler flow of water.

Fine-tuning aside, they're happy. "We like the animals it attracts, including birds. I've always liked the sound of moving water," John says.

Steps up lead to level areas, the first a meditation garden with an antique Japanese stone lantern, a low bamboo fence and wide flagstones. A simple wooden chair, tied-bamboo benches and a bonsai display set the stage for peace.

The open spaces on different levels farther up give the gardeners room to maneuver and provide views out over rooftops to the Cascade Range.

The Bennetts grow a lot of ground-cover plants, including this colorful Oxalis with its contrasting purple leaves and pink flowers.

Much of what is here is the result of muscle and sinew. Every year the couple haul and spread 50 bags of steer manure over the 6 inches of topsoil shoveled in at the onset. Contractors may have handled the rockery boulders, but the couple packed in a lot of sizable granite stones to use as steps and accents, many of them cleared off flood-swept mountain roads.

A number of choice plants arrived similarly. They salvaged vine maples, holly, hemlocks, old Japanese maples and Hinoki cypress when friends cleared lake-front properties. John recalls they spent two months a couple of winters ago up to their waists in mud, moving trees. On one occasion, they took a large trellis apart in their garden in order to haul in a mature lace-leaf maple.

A pool at the base of a waterfall is the year-round home for a number of koi, including a couple that like their heads stroked. Netting is often stretched across the pool to protect the fish from predators, including herons.

"I do seem to remember we arrived wanting a maintenance-free yard," John says of when they moved into their new house six years ago. "Then we started haunting nurseries."

"We bought books to see how to landscape," Shelley says.

Shelley works as a personal concierge; John has retired from one career and is now self-employed. But both say with confidence, should someone ask: "We're gardeners."