My Three Elements of Garden Design

A concept sketch for a client 

There is an awful lot to consider when designing a garden, besides the aesthetic design part.

I sat down a while back to organize my thoughts for a presentation at Foothill College's Environmental Horticulture and Design program, about how I approach a garden design project. There are numerous things to consider, but I was able to condense it down to three categories with basic points for each.

An edible garden I designed where the landscaper built beautiful raised beds

My categories below are all equally important, but sometimes one or another becomes the dominating constraint:

• PRACTICAL ELEMENTS 
• CLIENT PREFERENCES
• AESTHETIC & DESIGN ELEMENTS

I. PRACTICAL ELEMENTS

• The site: climate zone, exposure (sun/shade, wind), topography, current condition of soil &; existing plant material, etc.
• Type of garden maintenance desired for upkeep
• Use sustainable practices and climate appropriate plants
• Budget 

II. CLIENT PREFERENCES

• Plant likes and dislikes, style of garden desired, color preferences
• Allergies, other concerns (example- poisonous plants)
• Kids, pets
• What will the garden be used for? 

Besides listening carefully to our clients, a designer's job is to come up with interesting and exciting possibilities that fit their lifestyle. I try to come up with at least one or two ideas that are "out of the box" to nudge my clients into thinking creatively about using their new garden space for maximum quality of life. 

In addition to select native and ornamental plants, many succulents are "climate appropriate" for our area

III. AESTHETIC & DESIGN ELEMENTS

• Style of house (architecture), style of existing garden (things that will stay)
• Views (desirable & not), what can be leveraged to advantage?
• Dominant existing features (walls, large trees, colors) elements adjacent to the property
• Creating a beautiful planting design and suggesting enhancements (complimentary containers, water features, hardscape, etc.)

A DESIGNER'S CHALLENGE

After gathering and considering all of the elements above I ask, "how can I create a beautiful and satisfying garden for this client that is in harmony with the environment?"

As daunting as this task may seem, I find it helpful to remind myself what I was taught in my design classes: 

A “Problem” (or constraint) Is An Opportunity

For example: California's drought has created a myriad of opportunities for creatively rethinking what we plant in our gardens, and how we use them. I think this topic would be a great blog post! Stayed tuned...

Echeveria cante is a lovely succulent that adds style and beauty without a lot of fuss

Photos: Patricia Larenas, Urban Artichoke

Life After Conventional Gardens: a Liberating Experience

A climate appropriate garden is a beautiful garden!

Now that 2015 is waning and lawn replacements rebates are uncertain (in Santa Clara County, as of this writing) there are plenty of reasons to go ahead with your lawn replacement projects. I hope to continue to see more people taking action to replace high water-use gardens with climate appropriate ones. The current severe drought has forced us to rethink our gardens, and it's been a liberating experience for many.

Several of my garden design clients have been very pleased and excited by their new water-saving gardens that offer flowers and seasonal beauty to enjoy, as well as fresh herbs for the kitchen. I have the impression that many homeowners (especially non-gardeners) have traditional lawns as default landscaping, since it's difficult to figure out what to do otherwise. 

Besides the water savings, a huge bonus is not having to mow and fertilize a high maintenance lawn. A careful selection of appropriate plants leads to a low maintenance garden- that's also liberating!

But even if a patch of lawn is desired (for example, in a kids play area), there are several alternatives to conventional high water-use turf. See the Delta Bluegrass website to learn more. Native grasses offer seasonal beauty and elegance, but are not yet as tough as varieties that have been bred to withstand lots of foot traffic. 

An urn as a recirculating fountain attracts birds to this new garden (former lawn)

In the photos above, a garden we installed last May has grown to be a lush pollinator garden with native and ornamental sages, plus prolific culinary herbs for the kitchen (near the recirculating fountain, above). 
The photo below shows the garden after the lawn died and before the garden re-design:

Former conventional lawn before garden make-over 

A discarded but very nice pedestal fountain in the photo above was repurposed into a charming succulent planter by drilling holes into it so that irrigation tubing could be put in place (top photo). Succulents (as a group) are a great choices for low-water gardens. This group includes sedums, agaves, echeverias, sempervivums, aloes, as well as cacti. Nurseries have greatly expanded their offerings of succulents to meet the current demand.

The image below demonstrates the drama and color that succulents bring to the garden. 

Echeverias are paired with a large sculptural agave for an attractive color scheme
Photo taken at Succulent Gardens, Castroville, CA

The good news is that if you are ready to rethink your conventional landscape and make a liberating shift to a more climate appropriate one, there are more resources than ever to help you make the transition.

Here are some inspirational links to get you started:

Inspiring images of low-water gardens, Sunset Magazine

Santa Clara Valley Master Gardeners Drought Information page- chock full of resources

Xerces Society information page for creating pollinator gardens in California


Garden designed by Patricia Larenas, Urban Artichoke, Mountain View, CA
Garden installed by Jackie Marsey, Paradise Landscape and Garden, San Jose, CA

 Photos by: Patricia Larenas, Urban Artichoke

Sources of Inspiration for Drought Proofing Your Garden

Dudleya pulverulenta is a gorgeous California native

The severe drought of the last three years has demanded a revised approach to gardening and garden design in California. If you haven't replaced your lawn yet, consider taking advantage of incentives and rebates. Check your local city web pages.

Dialing it up a Notch
Having a landscape with low to moderate water needs in a severe drought isn't good enough, so I've been dialing up the drought tolerance of my garden. Besides, the less I'm watering other stuff, the more edibles I can grow. 

And it's not that I'll be deprived of a rewarding garden, it just takes some focused plant choices. To keep it simple, collecting plants from the salvia (sages) and succulents groups offers lots of showy and water-wise choices, including drought tolerant California natives. As a bonus, saliva and succulent flowers are potent magnets for pollinators, especially hummingbirds and bees of various types.

A Sage for Every Garden

Pineapple Sage, Salvia elegans, is a hummingbird magnet

 Not all salivas are drought tolerant. For the toughest and showiest look to our California natives: Salvia clevelandii 'Winnifred Gilman', Salvia pachyphylla, Rose Sage, and Salvia apiana, White Sage, to name some of the most popular selections. Look for your local chapter of the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) plants sales to purchase native sages.

Many sages flower almost all year round

If you are choosing sages at your local nursery, make sure to check on the water needs of each specific variety before you plant them in your garden. They'll reward you with abundant flowers and fragrant foliage with very little upkeep. Most sages appreciate an annual pruning to renew foliage and flowers for the next season.

Succulent Envy

A recent shopping trip to Succulent Gardens in Castroville

There seems to be no end to the variety of shapes and  sizes of this plant group that includes cacti, as well as echeveria, sempervivens (Hens and Chicks), groundcover sedums, plus aloes and agaves.

Succulents pair well with natural rock features

Use them on the ground in mass plantings, create a rock garden, hanging baskets, or in plant in repurposed containers for interesting focal features. 

Success with Succulents

For low maintenance success you'll need to make sure the soil has excellent drainage, and no chance of remaining soggy. I like to use succulent & cacti planting mix or buy soil for potted plants and mix with lava fines 2:1. Don't fertilize, as a rule. If you must, use very little to kick-start growth then just water periodically when the soil is dry. Avoid keeping them moist which leads to rotting.

It's also important to note the hardiness, or frost tolerance of your selection. If you've fallen in love with a frost sensitive type, make sure you remember to protect her when the cold season approaches.

Photos: Patricia Larenas, Urban Artichoke