We are in the first phases of plant selection this week. Here is a rough draft of a planting plan.
Plant selection for this project includes bioswale plants, water loving plants for the retention pond, many native favorites and plants to create a healthy habitat. This project varies drastically from another current garden design, in which the clients need very low maintenance, xeriscaping plants.
This project is still in the preliminary design phases. Once the design of the hardscape and planting areas is keyed in, we will move on to the best part: plant selection and detail work!
The rain (along with gorgeous fall colors) brings inspiration! I am recalling all of the ways I have used it in design throughout the years.
A recent rainwater harvesting workshop brings me back to my love of steadily available water sources we have here in Portland to USE rather than lament. Rain surely is a blessing in disguise. Currently I am working on a project in which my client is excited about the artistic side of rain water. In this project, we will be exposing the rain water for all that it is worth, using metal forms to track the water from the (single) gutter of the roof to a series of channels which will run throughout the garden to drain to a sunken garden (retention pond). We are choosing materials which will handle the water nicely and look really interesting even when it is not raining.
There might even be opportunity for a green roof. Speaking of green roofs, how I wish I could visit some of the ones I have worked on in the past that are not open to the public! The Portland Building in particular would be fun to visit, for there was no ballast!! While I visited it for inspection it felt like you could just fly over Portland. So much fun to have work on a roof top! (Image from Macdonald Environmental Planning)
Beyond green roofs I have worked with schools to develop educational systems for students and public awareness through other educational systems. These were some of the most exciting projects to have been a part of. The possibilities of rainwater harvesting are endless and I love knowing we have just scratched the surface of it’s potential. Although it is an age old practice, there is still so much to learn of it’s integration into modern day architecture.
The Bread and Pizza Oven
We finally made a bread oven! It is built into a low retaining wall (currently in the works). This photograph was taken before the finish plaster was added.
The oven was built in four stages. First came the base and insulation of the oven floor. For that layer we used first glass bottles and perlite, and sat the fire brick on top of that.
The second phase was a sand mound which would create the interior space of our oven and a mold for the clay.
Using clay and sand we created the first layer. For insulation we made a second layer of clay, sand, perlite and straw. The finished plaster was made with clay and fibers.
The base is made of recycled brick and the oven is made from clay found on site.
The oven was very fun to make and we look forward to reaping our rewards.
Above is the design for a very sunny backyard I am currently working on. We are creating a fusion of the variations for the front yard.
Three variations on the front yard:
Spring is here!
I am working on several projects and cannot wait to see them break ground. Two of my clients are providing very distinct design challenges. One of them is a shady side yard, which is long and narrow, and the second is a large, square, very sunny back yard. Both are receiving complete renovations.
The Shady and Narrow Side Yard
Currently this fenced in side yard is composed of a children’s play structure (rarely used) and concrete. Several key elements that the clients wish for are a kitchen/BBQ area, a space to entertain and have family dinners, and a sense of lushness and intimacy in a now concrete flooded side yard.
The design is beginning to take a very nice shape. The space is being formed into several niches defined by a sinuous, organic (yet well defined ) stone path. Because of the long and narrow shape of the small yard, the design will break up the linear space with a circular patio and natural water feature. The design takes advantage of vertical elements to add another dimension to the yard with bamboo groves, trellises and a small arbor over the patio.
As I pick plants to use for this project I concentrate on finding one or two nice fruit trees to add Spring blossoms and fruit for the children near the patio.
For those shady places I am designing with plants that have a nice lush look to them such as ferns, anemones, hellebore, hosta and tall grass.
The Sunny, Large and Square Back Yard
When I came to see this project I was amazed at the possibilities at hand. It literally is a blank slate! One of a designer’s dreams, a large, sunny grass-filled lawn. Because of the size of this particular project the client and myself are working together to phase it out. There is also construction in the future which we are planning around.
The clients are veggie lovers, want to grow edibles, plant a rain garden, and use the space for entertaining and relaxing. They also have a two year old girl who will be exploring the garden for years to come.
At home, I am working on the veggie garden. Beets, carrots, radish, kale, collards, salad greens and peas are all sprouting outdoors. Inside we have our baby tomatoes and flower seedlings slowly breaking ground. The apple and plum trees have been pruned and are beginning to blossom and a large Magnolia is framing all of this in the background.
Projects for the summer here include a stone patio, mixed materials retaining wall, an earthen pizza oven, and new steps out front! Where do we start?! I also have high hopes to add more trellis work and vines to protect certain exposed areas of our front deck as well as backyard.
Half the interest of a garden is the constant exercise of the imagination. -Mrs. C.W. Earle, Pot-Pourri from a Surrey Garden, 1897
