Gabion baskets are wire-framed containers filled with stone, used to build durable retaining walls or add texture and character to a landscape. While Western New York often relies on large boulders for wall construction, gabions are ideal for areas where heavy machinery can’t reach, or when a hand-built, artisanal approach is the only option.

At Dore Landscape, we’ve used gabion baskets to stabilize lakefront properties, create natural landscape features, and solve access challenges that other methods can’t. With years of hands-on experience, both locally and internationally, we understand how to design and build gabion structures that are both beautiful and built to last.

When Lake Ontario rose more than three feet in 2017, shoreline erosion caused major damage across Niagara County. Many homes on Sunset Island and other lakefront areas were unreachable by heavy equipment, making traditional boulder walls impossible.

Dore Landscape used gabion baskets to create hand-built retaining structures that stabilized the shoreline and protected the homeowners’ properties. The baskets were transported and filled by hand, making them the perfect solution in tight, difficult terrain.

In 2015, Ed and his son Dan traveled to El Salvador to assist at a Carmelite mission operated by Ed’s former classmate, Fr. Dave Blanchard. The mission needed a large cascading gabion wall, nearly 60 feet, to support the development of an outdoor obstacle course for their Experiential Knowledge Learning Center.

With limited tools and no machinery, the entire structure was built by hand. Every stone was moved, sorted, and placed using only manpower, patience, and teamwork. This experience wasn’t just meaningful, it provided deep, practical training that Dore Landscape now brings into their Western New York projects.