California is in a drought, and it looks like this is not going to be a rare event going forward. So we’re getting selective. This means losing potential clients, who may not share these values. “I don’t want your values in my backyard!” anonymus caller No, that did not go well. Never mind that they’reContinue reading “Did we become snotty tree huggers? Or just insist on designing for the future?”
Category Archives: Sustainable design
Mid-century patio gardens, 2008.
Sometimes everything has to follow one theme. Sometimes, not so much. This design created transitions between outdoor rooms, each with its own character. Arrive, entertain, relax Arrival The entire front, including the home’s façade and garage door, got a redo. The biggest issue was that once you were in the entry patio, you were basicallyContinue reading “Mid-century patio gardens, 2008.”
Provence in Sacramento
When you can’t get away as much as you like, create your destination where you live. You can play pétanque, dip in the pool, relax on the deck, entertain, enjoy a glass of Côtes-du-Ventoux with your friends. No arduous plane trip required! Maybe you can even speak a bit of French… Materials: Zellige tiles inContinue reading “Provence in Sacramento”
A tapestry of colors for a front yard
Low-growing plants create a tapestry of color, punctuated by bold agaves, backed by taller shrubs and trees. It’s a great place for hummingbirds and pollinators, too. This garden has been growing for several years now, and has moved into the phase where maintenance centers on keeping the plants in bound as opposed to letting weedsContinue reading “A tapestry of colors for a front yard”
Butterflies in the garden
Our butterfly bush gets numerous visitors as butterflies emerge. The garden also gets the occasional dragonfly who snatches small flying insects in the air and devours them. So far, we’ve had about six species of butterflies and three species of dragonflies. butterflies Butterflies have scaly wings, hence their name in Latin, lepidoptera. So if oneContinue reading “Butterflies in the garden”
Concept for a sloping site
We’ve been busy doing consults. They’re not affected much by social distancing since they’re outdoors and we email back the drawings. Staying home in a wonderful new garden space is not a bad thing! New Style A bold, modern desert look is up next, transforming an ordinary suburban landscape into a bold, water conserving statement.Continue reading “Concept for a sloping site”
Red Yucca (Hesperaloe) from seed
The new fancy varieties may not set seed, but if you have the normal, tall apricot-pink type you should start seeing nice black seeds sitting inside recently split brown seed pods. Good news: they’re easy to start. Bad news: they take forever to flower. Growing the seeds Place the seeds in a pot, lightly coverContinue reading “Red Yucca (Hesperaloe) from seed”
Deer Grass: a pollen source for honeybees!
Grasses are supposed to be wind pollinated, so bees should ignore them, right. Actually, no. Our local honeybees have discovered that deer grass produces lots of usable pollen. They come in numbers to gather pollen, storing on their back legs as bright yellow balls. Another funny thing is that deer grass is native, but honeybeesContinue reading “Deer Grass: a pollen source for honeybees!”
Annette goes digital
Today, Annette grabbed her iPad and jumped into a design, taking notes, sketching and finally creating a schematic site plan. Mike shot measurements with a laser rangefinder, created a base plan and beamed it to Annette, who then went a bit wild. You might call it a gyre, a circling over of what she learnedContinue reading “Annette goes digital”
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!”