Adjusting a design

Plans are not always accurate. And even when they’re spot on, that doesn’t mean that the hardscape will go in per the plans. The result: planting areas may have more space, or less in this case. Doing an as-built survey is a major undertaking when everything has shifted. The solution? Vignettes. Vignettes are quick looksContinue reading “Adjusting a design”

A garden refresh near Lake Tahoe

Here are the steps needed if you want to undertake a garden refresh but need to complete it quickly. Briefly, there are three initial steps: gather data, create a planting plan, pick up and install the plants. This is provided that the preliminaries are in place: a working irrigation system (or person) that will provideContinue reading “A garden refresh near Lake Tahoe”

Design lessons from wildflowers

Wildflowers give great design lessons: color, planting design, ecology, light… Color Colors change throughout the day, shifting from warmer to cooler. They mix: sometimes complimentary (yellow-blue, violet-orange), sometimes analogous (shades of blue, pink or yellow). Planting design These plants often grow intermingled, where they support, shade or even nourish each other. Sometimes there are broadContinue reading “Design lessons from wildflowers”

Consults to Plans: a case study

All these sketches, concepts and plans came together to create a design for one project: a cloud of possibilities that condensed into a detailed concept ready for construction. It’s been a while since we invented a new workflow and adapted hybrid old school and digital creation for more flexibility. The goal was to get moreContinue reading “Consults to Plans: a case study”

Using irises in the garden

Our last post was about enjoying your irises; this article is about how to use them to best effect in your landscape design. Pacific Coast irises can be a bit fussy if they’re not in their preferred coastal climate, depending on which species were used to breed them. Some species come from the foothills, andContinue reading “Using irises in the garden”