Category Archives: garden design

drought tolerant plants, garden design, low maintenance gardening, sustainable gardening

Sustainable Tips for the Landscape

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWithout a doubt the most requested item I'm asked in the design process is to include low water use plants and solutions that are low maintenance. We live in the west where rainfall occurs predominantly from late fall through late spring in a good year and the amount and duration varies tremendously. Whether you live in the shade or the sun it's a smart idea to keep water costs down in the summer and preserve this natural resource.

We all want to do the right thing for the environment by reducing our carbon footprint and becoming good stewards of the land. We want to build our landscapes with green products and incorporate sustainable practices in the garden. A good way to do this is to create gardens that offer food and beauty for people and conserve water  while providing habitat and food for the rest of nature. A great place to learn more about the benefits of organic gardening, water conservation and sustainable healthy living is The Garden Faire this Saturday, June 22nd at Scotts Valley's Sky Park from 9am to 5pm.

In it's 8th year, The Garden Faire is a free-admission, educational event for the whole family with OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAknowledgable speakers, interactive demonstrations, food and beverage, live music, garden goods and plants for sale. This year The Faire will focus on the whole person offering a healthy rest stop with chair massage, reiki and a tea house.
This event is sponsored in part by both SLV and Scotts Valley Water Districts because they know the importance of sharing information about ways to conserve water.

What can you do right now to save water in your landscape? First choose wisely what you plant in the garden and how you water. Start with a smart design by evaluating how the space will be used and what plants will thrive with a minimum of care and pruning.  Select the best trees and place them to shade the south side of the house to reduce cooling costs. Supplement the soil by making soil health a priority. Examine your irrigation system and watering plan for efficiency and minimal waste.
    
helleborus_argutifolius2A time saving strategy is to group plants with similar moisture needs. This may sound like a no brainer but if you have just one prima donna in a bed of more drought tolerant plants, you'll be dragging the hose over there for just one plan or running the irrigation system longer to keep it happy.  If you find that some of your plants are not quite as low water as you'd like, move those to their own spot. Grow thirsty plants in the lowest areas of your garden where more water collects. In general, plants with large leaves usually require more water and transpire faster while drought tolerant plants typically have deep taproots and leaves that are smaller, silver, fuzzy or succulent.

Your method of irrigation helps conserve water. Hand watering where possible, especially new plantings, directs the water exactly where its needed and you can shut off the hose as soon as the plants receive enough water. A soaker hose is another efficient option that reduces evaporation during the watering process. An automatic irrigation system with a rain sensor, weather based controller or soil moisture sensors is the newest way to save water.

Plant  dry climate plants like tea tree ( leptospermum), lavender, rosemary and sage in open, sunny areas and shade the soil with drought tolerant ground covers like ceanothus, manzanita, oregano and thyme to conserve moisture. Try Corsican hellebore (helleborus argutifolius)for a tough, low water use plant in a shady area. Use less turf grass and more walkable ground covers where possible to keep the landscape looking green and fire safe.

To improve soil structure, plant deep rooted plants to break up heavy soils and add organic matter.  Using wood based mulch on garden beds helps contain moisture in the soil, too.  To provide soil with nitrogen, plant ceanothus, clover, legumes like beans, and peas and lupine. To supply minerals as compost or mulch plant chives, comfrey, garlic and white yarrow.

California natives or plants from similar climates in the world are low maintenance, low irrigation plants and usually need less tending, fertilizer and pruning. Like all plants they require a period of irrigation in order to become established. Even plants that require no irrigation after becoming established like Flannel Bush (Fremontodendron) will need some water for the first 2 summers, at least, and maybe even during the first winter if there is a long dry spell.  The rule of thumb to determine if a plant is established and self sufficient and therefore not requiring any more irrigation is when it has grown 2-3 times the size it was when planted or after is has been growing for 2 summers.
 

fall foliage, Flowering trees, garden design, trees

Why We Love Trees

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When you look out your windows into your landscaping what catches your eye first? Maybe the hydrangeas are looking beautiful about now covered with giant flowers in sky blue, dark pink or white. Maybe it's the purple and red spikes of your salvias that both you and the hummingbirds enjoy. But I'll bet the most majestic and inspiring sight in your garden are the trees that frame your house giving it a sense of permanence, welcoming you home and providing a haven for songbirds that serenade you on a spring day.

cornus_capitata_closeupLarge or small trees make the world go round. They produce oxygen and act as a giant filter that cleans the air we breathe. A mature leafy tree produces as much oxygen in a season as 10 people inhale in a year.

Trees clean the soil by absorbing dangerous chemicals and other pollutants that have entered the soil. They can either store harmful pollutants or actually change the pollutant into a less harmful form. Trees can filter sewage and clean water that runs off into our streams. They can absorb and lock away carbon dioxide as wood so it is not available as greenhouse gasses.

If you live near a busy street trees can muffle the noise almost as effectively as a stone wall. They also act as a windbreak during windy and cold seasons reducing the drying effect of the wind and keeping it from blowing  precious topsoil away.

Trees slow storm water runoff helping to recharge our Santa Margarita and Lompico aquifers. On top of all the cool things trees do for us they provide shade and cool us in the summer. In the winter they break up the wind reducing heating costs. Trees increase property values.

If you've been thinking about adding a few trees to your own property here are some of my favorites. Some don't get enough recognition and some are classics. All make great additions to the garden.

Early in spring the flowering plums and cherries let us know that winter is over and a new season has begun. Then the dogwoods start to bloom and we're awestruck. Maybe you know of an especially beautiful specimen that gets your attention each year when it blooms. There are a couple varieties that I like to include in designs that are easy to grow and live for many decades.

Introduced to me by Barrie Coate, the renowned arborist and horticultural consultant, the Evergreen cornus_capitataDogwood, Cornus capitata, is also known as Himalayan flowering dogwood and lives up to its name in every respect. This under used tree is breathtaking in late spring and early summer with large flower bracts over 3" across.  A friend has one in her garden and it is the showiest tree on her property for several months. This variety is slow growing reaching 20 ft tall in sun or partial shade after about 25 years. After flowering, red fruit provides a treat for the birds.

Another dogwood variety that makes a wonderful addition to the garden is the Venus dogwood. I've heard it said that some consider it even showier than the Evergreen dogwood but I like them all. It's a fast growing deciduous hybrid with white flowers as large as your hand. Summer flowers give way to strawberry-like fall fruit as the leaves turn color. It's highly resistant to disease and drought conditions.  What's not to love? I also recommend Cornus Eddie's White Wonder for it's beauty and disease resistance.
Cercis_Forest_Pansy
If you would like a tree in a certain spot but don't have lots of room, consider  a Drimys winteri, commonly known as Winter's Bark. This evergreen, slender tree from Chile has aromatic mahogany-red bark which cured sailors in past centuries from scurvy and leathery fragrant leaves. Small clusters of jasmine-scented, creamy white flower appear in winter and spring. It grows to only 20 feet tall.

Other trees that are favorites of mine include Forest Pansy redbud for its stunning red foliage and Sango Kaku Japanese maple for its year round interest. Arbutus Marina, Oklahoma Texas redbud and Tristania laurina Elegant are also wonderful trees for the landscape.

Plant a tree for yourself and future generations.
 

color in the garden, flowering shrubs, fragrant plants, garden design, gardening lore, landscaping history, perennials, plant care

A 100 Year Old Garden near Quail Hollow

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lawn_perennial-bordersVisiting gardens is one of my passions. Wherever I travel I take time to enjoy an arboretum or a historical garden wherever I find them. Local gardens can be just as exciting and recently I was invited to stroll and marvel under majestic oaks in a beautiful garden near Quail Hollow.

This 25 acre property was first developed by an Englishman in the very early 1900's. After building an Italian Mediterranean style house featuring plenty of earthy materials such as terra-cotta paver floors and patios, red clay tile roof, stucco walls, rustic wood beams and enclosed outdoor spaces, he set out to landscape the property.

A spring fed creek provides water to a woodland garden with 40 foot rhododendrons still thriving and in full  bloom during my visit. Western azaleas scented the air and the horsetail, columbine and white calla lily rhodie_bicolor2grew lush in the moist soil. The original owner built Japanese inspired stone bridges over the creek, the remnants still poking through the ferns.

Huge stands of black bamboo and golden bamboo border the creek in another area making me wonder if perhaps he became interested in these exotic plants after the 1915 San Francisco Panama-Pacific Exposition that showcased plants from all over the world. The current owners have installed a 3 foot barrier to keep the bamboo in check. Now towering 25 feet tall, the black bamboo shades the house on the south side with stems 2" thick.

The property passed from the original owner to a concert pianist who lived there until she died. The current owner bought the property in an estate sale in the early 1970's. When he married Nancy 23 years ago the garden again came to life. The front yard which had been a flood-irrigated horse pasture was transformed into the magical place it is now.

Nancy is the perfect steward of the land. Interested in all growing things she has surrounded the lawns with shrubs, perennials, grasses and flowers of every type. Sunny borders bloom with trellised Cecile Brunner roses, pink clematis montana and purple Jackmanii clematis along with lots of bright red climbing roses. By providing support, Nancy has even coaxed Apple Blossom and other carpet roses to bloom off the garden floor.

In addition to her gardening successes, Nancy shared her ongoing nemesis. Every year she said she hand picks at least a hundred white gaura that have self-sown. Seems Siskiyou pink is not as prolific. The crocosmia Lucifer have overtaken one bed and she begged me to take some. I politely declined. Her white Japanese anemocourtyard2ne threaten to march into the lawn but the pink variety is better behaved. Nancy takes it all in stride. You can feel her love of gardening and plants at every turn.

Nancy loves perennials. The chocolate cosmos were just emerging but the double coreopsis, Spanish and English lavender, Moonshine yarrow, Japanese iris, douglas iris and columbine were in full bloom. In a shady spot by the old icehouse daphne, azalea and pieris had just finished their show. The hydrangeas were all budded and ready to take over the spotlight.

We walked through a lovely enclosed courtyard complete with formal fountain and Nancy pointed out containers of gardenias, Evergold carex grass, a deep red Bob Hope camellia and huge woodwardia ferns. She planted the rhododendrons bordering the courtyard over 20 years ago. A gopher did get 3 of the camellias last year but she's now replanted in gopher baskets. Her Japanese maples, started from seedlings, are now 6 ft tall with trunks over an inch thick.

I'll never forget the afternoon Nancy shared her garden with me and Sherman, the springer spaniel I was dog-sitting.  It's an enchanting place and I'm looking forward to visiting again.