This is a view lot, so views should be impressive both on and off the property. From the master bedroom, two vanishing edges. From the great room, the long axis of the pool. From other rooms, the cool spa / water lounge. To complete this, lots of low, structural plants and ornamental grasses. Not allContinue reading “Views to impress”
Author Archives: mike
A new garden grows in Davis
A nasty, green, unused swimming pool full of algae dominated this back yard, surrounded by safety fencing to keep everyone out. It was large, swamp green and placed smack in the middle of the garden, rendering the heart of the back yard unusable. Then a crew moved in, broke up the pool and filled inContinue reading “A new garden grows in Davis”
Focaccia!
One day, I’ll get brave enough to try baking this outdoors, using charcoal for heat. I imagine the flavor will be wonderful, but I also imagine that uniform cooking might be problematic. For now, I’m making the stuff in the oven, varying the ingredients: fennel fronds or rosemary from the garden (or fennel seeds onceContinue reading “Focaccia!”
Birds!
Today was a good day for birds in the garden. Hummingbirds buzzed around, catching insects on the wing, then stopped by their favorite flowers for a sip of nectar. Scrub jays sipped from the fountain, mockingbirds flitted through the branches, a black phoebe paused in the tree and two bewick’s wrens chased each other acrossContinue reading “Birds!”
Top ten Trace sketch of the month!
Morpholio honored one of Mike’s master plan sketches in their top ten this month. He’s the only landscape architect awarded, sharing the glory with architects, illustrators and industrial designers. This is his first award for the craft of illustrating a design rather than the design itself. The sketch is a detail of a master plan,Continue reading “Top ten Trace sketch of the month!”
Pollinators
What’s the best pollinator plant in the garden right now? Mint! Just plain old mint, grown from cuttings from the supermarket. The second best, native narrow-leaf milkweed. Although many of the insects are the same, some preferred the mint, shunning the milkweed. Variety is king! Quite a swarm out there Bees These include sweat bees,Continue reading “Pollinators”
Fragrant snakes!
Sansevieria Trifasciata has lots of names. Snake plant is probably the most neutral. For the others, pick a scary nemesis: mother in law, devil, djinn, make it possessive and add “tongue”. There’s bow string hemp, too. And St. George’s sword. Then there are all the variations in color and form, each with its own name…Continue reading “Fragrant snakes!”
Amaryllis belladonna, our best bulb?
Some information on Amaryllis belladonna lilies
Plan first, build later
A while back, we visited a garden, almost completely built except for planting and a few details. Was it impressive? Yes! Did it fit how the people would use their garden? Maybe not so much. This is an example of where the program needs to come from the garden’s owners, developed by a professional designer,Continue reading “Plan first, build later”
Stencils? Yes, digital ones!
Just when you thought stencils, rulers, triangles and protractors went extinct back with the dinosaurs, along comes someone to transform them into digital illustration tools. Virtual stencils, virtual pens… but real results. First, you draw a black and white image in an illustration app. The black parts will fill with color; the white will beContinue reading “Stencils? Yes, digital ones!”