GARDEN DESIGN: QUICK! GRAB YOURSELF A COPY!

Eye of the Day has been involved with the publication Garden Design magazine for many years. The latest iteration  of this “magazine” is quarterly and feels more like a book than a periodical.  There is absolutely no advertising to interrupt the flow of articles and inspiring photographs.

My eye was first caught by the Editor’s Note  “Moonshot Thinking for a Low Water World” in which Thad Orr, Editor-in-Chief, discusses replacing lawn with water-wise alternatives involving collection systems and irrigation monitoring. On the facing page is Fresh: Inspiration and Innovations from the World of Garden Design.  This article addresses “Tough Questions about Drought” by asking four people: the Director of the Nature Gardens of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, the Director of the Landscape Architecture and Horticulture Gardening Programs at UCLA, a well-known Californa Landscape Architect and the Water Efficiency Manager of Irvine Ranch Water District, what can be done to conserve water this summer and in the future. Initially, this was all I needed to  continue reading; we all need to immerse ourselves in questions and answers about water usage.

Elise’s Gift showcases the historic Redford Gardens in Quebec, illustrating the article about one of the largest plant collections in North America and the story of its founder, Elsie Stephen Redford with photos of the abundant flora of the gardens that were once the family’s fishing camp. Reading about Elsie’s vision and involvement in her “garden” overlooking the St. Lawrence River has me wishing for an in-depth  biography of her life.

These are only a few of the gems between the covers of Garden Design. This impressive publication is just jammed with articles and photos that are so interesting, beautiful and thought provoking that even those of us not claiming to be gardeners  will just want to absorb.

Subscribe here.

TOP YOUR POT WITH TUMBLED TERRACOTTA

You have a beautiful citrus tree and a beautiful pot, together making a perfect statement piece, but maybe there’s something to make it even better from a design standpoint and for water conservation.

Design professionals typically use under-planting to finish the look of  a tree or tall plant in a pot.  They might use Alyssum,  Baby Tears, Lobelia,  Creeping Rosemary or any other trailing or low-growing plant.  During our current drought, we see more succulents being used, such as String of Bananas, String of Pearls,  Hens and Chicks or Sedum as under-planting and as a living mulch. You can see these same plants in action as part of our video: How to Convert a Fountain to a Succulent Garden. 

More recently, designers have moved beyond plants and have progressed to using tumbled glass in almost any color, moonstones and beach pebbles.  At Eye of the Day, we are ALL about terracotta, so we have developed a new “pot topper” which not only looks beautiful, but helps maintain and control soil moisture in the container while allowing the surface of the soil to breathe (VERY important to container health).

This new product is Tumbled Terracotta, produced from Italian terracotta fragments, tumbled to soften the edges.  Succulents, cactuses and aloes can also be planted between the pieces for a more carpeted effect further enhancing the design and beauty of container planting.

Our Tumbled Terracotta is available in pieces categorized into three sizes, small at $3 per pound, medium and large at $2 per pound.  The next time you visit Eye of the Day, we’ll show you how using Tumbled Terracotta Pot Toppers adds beauty and practicality to your container planting.

GROUNDSKEEPING:  Austin, Texas

Being from California, born and raised, I have always had a prejudice towards Texas.  They were cowboys and we were beach people if not surfers.  They like six guns and we like bongs, they eat TexMex and we eat real Mexican food.  Girls in Texas have big hair and wear lots of makeup and who doesn’t still dream about California girls.

Texas is a desert and so is most of California. We both have major water issues and we both landscape our homes and developments like there is no bottom to the aquifers that provide much of our water.

Travelling to Austin to visit my family I have come to really, really enjoy it.  This hilly area along the Colorado River (different Colorado from the one we know in California) is a fun and exciting place and I enjoy driving the neighborhoods and suburbs when I’m there.  On a recent trip I went out to visit different landscape architects and design firms.

Several were in the Tarrytown neighborhood just west of the downtown which is doing its best to emulate the high-rise culture of many large cities today.  Tarrytown is an area of old and new residences that fit the description of “stately”.  With their use of Texas limestone for structures, walls and pathways and stairs, there is a feeling of substance and earth filled with lush landscapes that make one appreciate the humidity and heat in a way that as a Californian I didn’t know I could.

There are many, many architects and developers in the busy and growing Austin area and the design elements are trending to mid-century modern and contemporary.  The populace is very conscious of their outdoor areas and driving the neighborhoods shows a diversity of styles when it come to containers they use.

This historic estate makes the most of its entrance with lidded finials on the entry posts and two Campania concrete vase planters on the front porch.
 

Next is an empty tree planter downtown Austin on Willy Nelson Blvd.  Metal and wood, built for public traffic.  A new, modern twist on the Versailles planter used all over Europe with a very western feeling.  Perfect for walking on the sunny side of the street.  

Another commercial application, this project is in the University of Texas neighborhood – a large, metal square.  I like the scale and simplicity of its design and size in front of this office building.  

If you haven’t been and think of Texas the way I used to, I suggest a trip to the Austin area.  Great food, great music, the home of Whole Foods and a great place to experience the South and easy livin’ in great gardens.

A LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT DESIGNS FOR THE DROUGHT

While landscape architect Sally Farnum of SE Farnum Associates has been taking the time to educate her clients about how to deal with their outdated, thirsty landscapes—especially rolling, green lawns—she has designed and implemented an outside environment for her own home that is water-considerate and still lush, inviting and peaceful.

The first task was to remove a large front lawn and some accompanying flower beds.

BEFORE: Water-thirsty lawn

DURING: Removing lawn and introducing granite

Next, grading, drainage and landscape plan was translated to the area. Decomposed granite was used as the base of the pathway from the driveway, culminating in a keyhole design, at the end of which a dry-stacked rock wall would serve as a retaining wall as well as the background for a Gladding McBean fountain conversion.

ALMOST FINISHED!
Flanking each side of the pathway are two Antique Green Gladding McBean Oil Jars, preparing the eye for the fountain.  Planting on the perimeter of the path area includes a variety of water-friendly plants and trees.

STAY TUNED
Check back next month on Sally’s design in progress for photos of the finished project.

The Truth Behind the Aged Terracotta You Buy

If you have read the articles by Scott Semple you now have a good understanding of what makes up terracotta pottery. From Gladding McBean’s stoneware to our Italian frost resistant earthenware containers, at Eye of the Day Garden Design Center we sell high-quality terra cotta products which last and last.

Now, what about aesthetics? Do you want your pots to last? Is it important that future generations are given your garden pots along with your jewelry, silverware and bedroom set? Many people love the patina of terracotta when it gets older and though a crumbling pot is not the same thing as “patina” they think it still looks cool.

This Italian pot from Terrecotte Olympia of Tuscany, Italy is a favorite of designers in Southern California. It is not made with frost proof Galestro clay but with Sienna clay, which is clay Americans typically find at their garden store. Olympia, like many Italian clays and other clays from which garden pots are produced, will almost immediately begin to spall and flake. Although they have a wonderful aged patina that designers love to specify in their designs, the material does not have a long life compared to pottery made from Galestro clay. The problems will be seen in Mexican and most Asian terracotta products as well.

At Eye of the Day, we hope that our retail and professional design clients will consider the investment they are making and choose terracotta for the centuries. For a further example of how these pots age and look, take a look at the following pictures of the Italian pots at the Ralph Lauren Store at the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto. If this is not enough to convince you, well, that’s why there are both vanilla and chocolate…something for everyone.

If you like that falling-apart look, come and see our seconds and close-out area at the store where we have lots of consigned pottery from customers who are replacing their containers with new ones. The prices are great and the look is shabby/chic. We also have remaining stock from Terrecotte Olympia at half price: it’s still half-good.

Musing on Design: Bonsai – Tiny Landscaping Using Very Little Water

Eye of the Day’s interest in gardening, plants and outdoor living goes beyond residential and commercial landscape architecture and into a special type of gardening—almost a form of intellectual gardening—with Joe Kalina, a man who is certainly musing on design.

Joe is always interested in a challenge and always interested in intellectual probing.  He received his degree in Fine Arts, worked as a draftsman and then pursued a degree in Business Administration while working as a designer at Northrup Grumman.  Now “retired,” Joe has a million projects, but one has held his attention since 1977.

With his knowledge of the elements of design, the art of Bonsai became a challenge and a love for him.  He first chooses a potential tree by looking at the size of the trunk based on how he envisions the outcome in the distant future. He then examines how the roots are dispersed around the base of the trunk to give structure and visual pleasure. The optimum plant has many branches which in traditional Bonsai practice are numbered.

Practicing the art of Bonsai is a true form of meditation and has helped Joe to gain the discipline to learn patience, as many of his projects have been ongoing for decades. For a few hours almost every day, tiny leaves are pulled and even tinier pine needles are removed with tools that are almost surgical.  Copper wires and wooden spacers are used to coax the tree into shapes that are traditionally sound as well as pleasing to the eye.

Many of the same methods that are used in landscape design are used in Bonsai: planning, strategy, use of sculptural elements, linear design, visual significance and personal style.  Joe has become genius at planning his unique landscapes, but he acknowledges there is time to learn even more patience.  He is a patient man.