Plants are the cheap part

I still love that I get to draw for part of my job. Having grown up with the notion that drawing was fairly useless and not a viable career, I of course steered myself in other directions and did not strenuously pursue drawing seriously. I regret that! I mean.. look around, how is it possible to think that drawing is not a thing of value? Everything you look at was most likely drawn by someone at some point in its development. aaaannnnywhooooo… I’m not bitter or anything.

Image of my messy and colorful desk covers in books about plants, drawings, and markers. there is also a tiny cat paw in the upper left.

Plants are almost the last thing to go in and everyone has sticker shock at that point. “Can we reduce the number of plants”? Yea, I guess you could. But why? You will just be disappointed with how sparse your landscape looks!

Here is what your hellstrip will look like with jut the ground covers.

Here is what it will look like with some flowering yet easy care shrubs and some boulders and cobbles. Do it!

The Peace of Wild Things

by Wendell Berry

Yellow in My Sketchbook

Just drawing yellow things in my landscape sketchbook. I’m being a bit lazy and not scanning or color correcting the images… these are just iPhone shots!

Project In-Progress

Oof, projects in-progress can look like a mess! There is some order to this chaos, I swear! Although, I will say that I prefer less chaos. In my ideal installation EVERYTHING gets done and then, like a week later, we come in with the plants, place them, ponder everything, and then plant. If contractors leave enough wire with their lighting fixtures we can then adjust those at that time. In this install we just din’t really have control of that. I can also see here that the sheet mulching is…. not great. I need several layers of OVERLAPPING cardboard. what happened here was that they literally planted the plants BEFORE they sheet mulched? It didn’t make a lot of sense.

This very small backyard was very boring. Why have a boring backyard when you can have color, and texture, and useable space?

Before picture. Photo is a long narrow lawn with a house on the left and a retaining wall on the right.

Currently, It looks like this. You can see we have added a new path and meanders through the middle of the landscape rather than crammed uncomfortable against the house. We’ve got some colorful plantings, a few small trees to help the absolutely scorching heat, and towards the far end there is a small patio with some raised beds, some really cute terracotta pots for herbs, and a self-contained ceramic water feature. We also bought a nice trellis from Terratrellis to help break up a very large and boring hot wall.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to seeing how this turns out!

Pet the Plants! Stachys byzantina

Lamb’s ears are so charming. They are one of those plants that will attract the attention of everyone, even folks who are not interested in plants, no one can resit petting them. They are great for sensory gardens and children’s gardens. I was just enjoying how they looked in rows at the nursery.

Helen von Stein is a variety that has larger leaves. I think this is one of the ones that doesn’t really flower. So maybe good for a garden with kids who are allergic to bee stings.

Stachys byzantine Helen von Stein

A couple of other varieties were at the nursery today, including ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy’ and ‘Silver Carpet’.

Keep in mind that these guys spread pretty easily, they are not invasive though. Also, do not give them too much water or they get kind of gross and rotten! ew!

Garden Design Styles

When I tell people I am a garden designer, they often ask me what style of garden I design. The answer is usually that I design (to the best of my ability given a million variables) the garden that my client desires. The garden needs to work for the client! I know many designers prefer to design in one style or another, and so their portfolio reflects that, and then people wanting that style seek out that designer. I have not really reached that point and I probably never will.

I did name my business Wild Things, in part, because I love a wild and unruly garden with lots going on and colors and wildlife and fun garden elements and nooks to explore. That kind of garden is great but not always practical. I ALSO love designing super modern gardens with clean lines and architectural plants just as well.

A lot of what I love about designing residential gardens is the space planning aspect of it. I spend an inordinate amount of time imagining what my clients might want to do in the garden, how they will move about in the garden, what will happen at different seasons, what they say they want/need vs. what I think they might actually want/need, etc. Of course, I'm just imagining all this, and what I really need is for the client to be as articulate as possible about THEIR OWN garden imaginings.

There is a business plan activity that I have encountered several times now that wants you to describe your perfect client. One of the items on my list is a client that is really engaged and curious about the possibilities. They will have a Pinterest or Houzz board with ideas, they will have memories of gardens from their childhood, and they will have some practical views on what they and their landscape can manage.

It's actually a tall order. If someone has never designed a landscape, it might be hard for them to come up with all of these ideas. That's why Pinterest and Houzz are actually such good resources for folks. Just diving in and getting a feel for what might be possible and what you find visually intriguing is a great start. I do often have to sit down with clients and dive into WHAT about a picture they are drawn to. Is it a specific plant, the style, a color combination, etc.

So the job of figuring all this out is really what draws me to this vocation. I do, of course, love plants, but plants come much later in the design process.

I was thinking the other day about how I played as a child. And I basically sat around in my room with my dollhouse decorating it and redecorating it. I had a million of those glass or ceramic animals you could buy at the Hallmark store (there was one just outside my neighborhood), and they were the inhabitants of my dollhouse. Mainly because I thought most human dolls were creepy. So, that's a lot like what I do now. LOL.

Pottery and Beyond

I live right near Pottery and Beyond in Emeryville so I like to stop by there now and then to see what they have in stock. Seeing containers and water features in person can be really useful. They do give a small industry discount, so that is nice. Most, if not all of their stock is from Pacific, Home, and Garden. You can just get their catalog or look online there to see the entire catalog. To order from Pacific, Home, and Garden you do need to have a wholesale account AND they are in Stockton (way, way… way out there). I don’t think they will deliver small orders.

So, for me, it’s worth it to go peek at items in person and determine if it is worth it to order from the wholesale company.

This visit I am looking at self contained water features for a small backyard client. These are nice because you don’t have to dig a giant pit like for the other types of pondless features. These contained fountains are easy to set up and really do have a nice water sound.

I thought this was a really nice one! It’s not a design I have seen before and I like the tall narrow design and the pattern.

The above video gives you a nice idea for how they sound. They are definitely less natural sounding because you can hear the ceramic echo. I don’t mind that and think they are just a great solution for small spaces, patios, and are just no-fuss kind of water features.

Pottery and Beyond also has a fair amount of hilarious ceramic or cement garden features. Please behold this hilarious sad fish. Why did I not buy this for myself?! I may have to go back.

Behold this sad fish. LOL.

Another made up landscape plan

In this one I was actually imagining this in my front yard in the bed by the driveway. In reality, the front yard planted with natives but this was one of my earlier imaginings.

I get obsessed with certain color combos. This one I’m looking at silver foliage and peach flowers.

Landscape Sketchbook - Vignettes

I like to do little landscape vignettes. Not a whole landscape design but just a bed or a small area. It’s fun to use these informal, made-up sketches to explore color and texture and layering of plants.

Here is one with lots of maroon, red, orange, and yellow plants.

Another one with some red and adding in some boulders and gravel, IDK, I find drawing these fun and soothing!

Remember moving that epic palm tree in Walnut Creek?

In order to get this project going we had to move this giant palm tree first. See my post from 2019 here: https://www.wildthingsgardendesign.com/blog/moving-a-palm-tree

This project is creeping along at a snails pace for a variety of reason! But I thought I would just post a three year update about this Brahea armata. Look how healthy it is! Operation move-a-palm was a success!

Healthy looking palm in it’s new location

This photo was taken from inside the partially completed new pool pavilion. all the other hardscape has been completed. The pool was resurfaced and new updated pool deck concrete has been poured. The retaining walls are in but not stuccoed yet. Sadly, the tree right next to the pavilion ended up getting a bit damaged. Will it recover? We shall see!

Here is a shot of the pavilion under construction. We’ve got some infrared heaters installed and some cute light fixtures! You can see the palm peeking out over the house in the left corner.

Children's Garden

This was a delightful garden to work on. The client had purchased a home with an enchanting, wonderfully quirky garden full of surprises around every corner. As someone who grew up loving the book 'A Secret Garden', I found myself not so secretly envious of the children who would grow up with is garden.

There was an area that was designatied as a children's garden and it needed a redo. It was hard packed dirt and weeds after refurbishing the two story playhouse. Other parts the garden were overgrown, the grape stake fence was overbearing and the gates no longer worked.

The designated children's area needed a complete makeover after the two-story playhouse renovation, leaving behind hard-packed dirt and weeds. Other sections had become overgrown, the grape stake fencing felt overwhelming, and the gates were no longer functional.

Our goal was to open up the space while maintaining its character as a children's haven. Given the shady conditions, we chose kurapia over traditional grass for the lawn. We were fortunate to find sod rather than plugs, creating an instant lawn that would also reduce bee activity in this shadier spot.

We installed a round TerraTrellis as the garden entrance and replaced the heavy grape stake fencing with an airy cable rail system. Both will eventually be softened with climbing vines for added privacy. The design includes a circular gravel seating area with a curved bench, plus natural tree stumps and boulders for play. A concrete patio with a picnic table for crafts, while raised beds provide space for growing vegetables, herbs, and flowers.

Quick and easy visualization

Sometimes I just take a Google Street View screenshot and scribble on it when I am thinking about plants or layouts. Very handy for front gardens! This is not a thing I would use to show a client, though.

Sometimes fast and easy is the way to go!

Ladybug Picnic

One, two, three
Four, five, six
Seven, eight, nine
Ten, eleven, twelve
Ladybugs
Came to the ladybugs' picnic

Folks from Gen-x will probably be able to hear this song in their head. Also, the Pinball number counting sound which is not relevant here...

Image of a ladybug, or lady beetle, on an Eriogonum leaf in Oakland, CA

I love ladybugs, as I think most people do. They are so round and brightly colored and clearly love having picnics., what’s not to like?

Did you know they are also beneficial insects for your garden?

You may sometimes in the spring see garden centers selling little tubs of ladybugs. I admit to having purchased these in the past. I DO NOT recommend you buy these poor things, though. They are wild harvested and can carry parasites.

Anyway, what usually happens? They are long gone by the end of the day. You can do things to keep them there. For instance, release them in the morning and make sure you have wet down your entire garden. Also, a a ton of aphids for them to eat.

If you do have an aphid problem you can ask around your neighborhood to see if anyone has some you can abduct. Really, you want them to stick around and lay eggs because the larvae eat more aphids than the adults do.

What do ladybug larvae look like?!

Cute spiky red and black ladybug larvae.

How to attract ladybugs to my garden?

Ladybugs like to crawl around on flat topped flowers like Achillea (yarrow) and Calendula. They do eat nectar and pollen. Make sure you have water for them and shade. Mostly, they want aphids! I tend to have tons of aphids on my vegetable garden. So, odds are if you leave that kale plant too long it will soon be covered in aphids.

Buffalo Bayou Cistern in Houston, TX

I grew up in the suburbs of Houston. Houston is VERY BIG. Wikipedia puts the Greater Houston area at about 10,062 square miles, slightly smaller than the state of Massachusetts. The suburbs were pretty boring, and as soon as we were teens able to drive, we left our immediate area to explore. We mostly went downtown, as that seemed to be where all the excitement was. We visited all the museums and parks, and of course, the music venues like Emo's, the Axiom, the Vatican, Fitzgerald's... I'm forgetting the others. Someplace called the Unicorn, maybe? Numbers... hahahah. We were underage, so I'm sure there were many clubs that were off my radar, plus my memories of high school are a bit hazy at this point.

I go back to visit my parents, and the area and city always feel very familiar but weird because I no longer really know my way around, and so many things have changed.

My interests have changed with age, as you might expect. Not that I don't still like to go to a punk club now and then! But I do love to explore parks with an eye for design, plantings, and history.

On my most recent visit, I decided to check out Buffalo Bayou Park, and more specifically, the Cistern. I don't remember this area being a park when I lived in Houston. It might have been, but it seems like they have put a lot of effort into it more recently, with tons of trails, landscaping, art, and gathering spaces.

You can see how big the whole park is! There is much to explore!

But it's hecka hot in Houston in July. I'm just not acclimated anymore, and I don't like being so hot and humid. It's not really conducive to exploring the outdoors. I did convince the family to head downtown to check out the Cistern on this trip though! I think I had seen that they were putting on concerts and art exhibits, but for our visit, they just had the regular history tour as an option. I love a history tour, so that was fine by me!

The Cistern is, obviously, pretty big! It held up to 15 million gallons of water. It is not in use anymore due to an irreparable leak. I just love that someone decided to turn it into a place to visit and tour. I'm imagining a meeting where some people are like, "Why the heck would people want to visit a musty old broken cistern?!" And other people are like, "Well, we can tell you are not huge nerds, so we're not even sure we can explain it to you!"

The ramped entrance is very dramatic!

I didn't manage to get many good photos. It looks as you might imagine... just like Khazad-dûm in the Lord of the Rings movies.

The water in this picture is only about 2 inches deep but the reflection makes it look like the water is deep and clear. I recommend this tour and exploring Buffalo Bayou Park. I’ll be back to check some of the other interesting-looking areas. The Lost Lake, the Arboretum, and there is a bat colony to visit(!), and a Children’s Nature Play Area.

Manzanita Gall

I was walking down the street and saw this plant and was sort of baffled by it. Have I seen this before? Maybe? Anyway, I took some pictures and googled around and then also asked my boss @terralindadesign.

So, these are caused by aphids. They are eating the leaves and cause the leaves to create this redish gall around the aphids. I’m still sort of having trouble picturing exactly what is happening here but the link above has a pic of a manzanita gall cut open and filled with aphids. I never took the Pests class at Merritt and clearly I should have!