I was struck by this engaging front entry that I saw while walking in the neighborhood recently. I was impressed by the cohesiveness of the color story they employed. Even in the dead of winter, on a cloudy and otherwise dreary day, this scene has snap. They've repeatedly used a coppery red; in the accent paint and containers flanking the front entry and then draw it out further with foliage and stems in a similar shade. Bravo!
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In the example below, the orange blooms of the witch hazel (Hamamelis x 'Jelena') are much more visible when backed by the evergreen shrub (Pittosporum tobira 'Tall and Tough') than when backed by the open sky, where the blooms would have a tendency to disappear.
Another group of shrubs that would benefit from this treatment is the winter hazel (Corylopsis), Corylopsis pauciflora, pictured on the left.
Actually any delicately-blooming, deciduous shrub could likely use the extra help. Other examples that come to mind include dawn viburnum (Viburnum bodnantense 'Pink Dawn'), Stachyurus praecox, and Edgeworthia chrysantha.
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A couple of super-simple winter containers that I did recently for a client are shown in the photos below. Both are dominated by structural evergreen plants of varying foliage colors and textures accented by reliable winter bloomers.
This star of this container is the ubiquitous Yuletide camellia (Camellia sasanqua 'Yuletide'). Though common, it still pleases me to no end to see it blooming its heart out all winter. I especially like it in combination with the Yucca filamentosa 'Golden Sword' which shines like a beacon; brightening this ensemble on dreary winter days. Also included is a purple-leaved Heuchera 'Frosted Violet', Helleborus x ballardiae 'HGC Pink Frost' which will bloom later in spring, and blue fescue with its evergreen blue tuft contributing textural contrast.
This container is in a sheltered but very shady, bordering on dark, spot at a covered front entry. The bright variegation of the Carex morrowii 'Evergold' acts like a footlight for the boldly textured Schefflera taiwaniana 'Yuan Shan.' The bright, shiny faces of the Helleborus niger 'HGC Jacob' blooms add further sparkle.
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Last fall, I began a comprehensive renovation, rejuvenation and overall heavy edit of my front garden. I've been gardening on my 50 x 100 lot in NE Portland since 1998, so some of my initial plantings had run their course. I removed several large shrubs to make some of the larger framework plants more "comfortable" and to make room for some fresh understory plantings.
But I'm particularly pleased with and excited to show you the hardscape additions I've made. These new hardscape features include a steel and stone retaining wall along the front of my garden and the addition of curvaceous raised beds made of steel flat bar woven in a sinuous, basket weave pattern.
I'd been enjoying working with steel in my client projects for some time, but hadn't yet landed on a way to incorporate some of my ideas into my garden at home. I believe that the combination of the steel with the basalt boulders really make this addition "work" within my existing garden. I've got a fair amount of existing stone and steel in my garden, so the union of these two materials make sense and ensure that the wall and the raised beds in the parking strip feel like a part of the larger whole.
Deciding to pursue these changes was the result of a combination of forces. Believe it or not, it started with the decision to change the way that I water my garden ... but alas, that’s a topic for another post. All that I’ll say about that part of the decision at this juncture is that I decided that I needed a wall or edge of some sort that would prevent water from immediately running off the slope and onto the sidewalk. And one thing led to another.
Additionally, some of the primary structural plantings in my garden had developed some heft and were ready to do more of the heavy-lifting in terms of holding the overall garden structure together. In particular: two Japanese maples (Acer palmatum), a crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia x indica 'Zuni'), a Magnolia stellata and my dynamic duo of Taxus x media 'Sentinalis' that were planted in the early stages of the garden's development and which are now quite established.
Another important factor was that some very lovely shrubs that I've enjoyed for a number of years had simply outgrown their welcome. The most significant removal was a very large, very beautiful doublefile viburnum (Viburnum plicatum tomentosum 'Mariesii'). It was one of the initial framework shrubs in the first incarnation of my garden, and a dozen years later it commanded the bulk of the southwest corner of my front garden. It was somewhat difficult to decide to remove this shrub, but once it was gone, it was immediately obvious that it was the right thing to do. Its removal allowed the structural plants I mentioned first to really do their thing.
The three photos above were taken very recently and give a pretty good idea of how the newly-installed steel elements fit into the front garden and provide a structural frame to embrace the exuberant plantings. The flowing form of the woven steel presents a satisfying juxtaposition to the sturdy, linear lines of the retaining wall.
As always, I'm certain that I’ll continually tweak and tinker with my planting schemes, which is one of the things that I find most enjoyable about garden-making. With the addition of this steel frame and the editing of my structural plantings, I'll be able to do that and preserve a sense of orderliness in the overall scene.
I always like to see process shots, so I've included some of those as well. In the first photo in the sequence just above, the paint lines show how I "roughed-in" the cuts and general shape of the raised edging in my parking strip. While I moved and removed a number of plants, I wanted to work around an Albizia julibrissin 'Summer Chocolate' that was really starting to develop a nice shape. The second photo is taken from the same angle immediately after we completed construction. The third photo gives a closer view from a different angle. The fourth and final photo was taken at the same angle very recently.
There are two pathways that are cut into the parking strip to improve pedestrian access. The series of three photos above show the primary path leading to the front walkway to our house.
The two photos above show the front retaining wall just after construction was completed. The second close-up view shows the steel and boulder joint. The wall face is constructed with sheets of 3/16 Cor Ten steel plate, trimmed with a 3 x 2 angle iron cap situated such that there is a 2" reveal on the front and 3" on top. The wall seams are finished with an additional piece of flat bar and secured with bolts.
I want to close with a note of thanks to the landscape professionals who helped bring my concept to life. Once again, I had the pleasure of working with Pete Wilson of Pete Wilson Stoneworks on this project. Pete and his crew are skilled professionals that have been behind the construction of many of my most memorable projects. In particular, Niall Hannan of Pete Wilson Stoneworks was an instrumental partner in the implementation of the woven steel and boulders in the parking strip. Rob Trautmann is another frequent contributor on client projects and was a natural fit to work with Pete on the installation of the steel wall. This project was a first for all of us in terms of bringing the steel and stone together in this way and shows the true power of a collaborative construction process.
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I'm lucky to have a great working relationships with a talented stonemason, Pete Wilson of Pete Wilson Stoneworks based here in Portland, Oregon. We've collaborated on many wonderful gardens together.
Pete and his team built this dry stack basalt stone seat wall for a Bloomtown Gardens client in NE Portland and I think it's some of their best work. The joinery in this sinuous, curving seat wall is crisp and tight.
You've seen, and will likely see more, photos of the plantings in this garden on this blog, but I wanted to take a moment to put the spotlight on the fine craftsmanship that went into the building of this garden. While the plantings in this garden are gorgeous, I believe that a solid hardscape "frame" is an essential element for creating successful all-season gardens.
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This springtime scene was captured in my garden in NE Portland, Oregon several years ago. This purple-prevalent planting scheme is dominated by a red leafed Japanese maple (Acer palmatum dissectum), Rhododendron 'Anah Kruschke', Australian mint bush (Prostanthera rotundifolia) and a blue flowering clematis hybrid. This largely monochromatic planting scheme is enhanced by the variety of flower shapes, different foliage textures, and the variation in the hue and intensity of the color.
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These two super common plants are a potent illustration of how powerful textural contrast can be in planting design. Even the ubiquitous boxwood and laurel become more interesting when viewed in the same "eyeshot" as in this photo here -- definitely stronger together than each is alone.
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I designed this foliage-driven planting scheme for a client in NE Portland, Oregon and it looks good all year. At the time the first photo was taken, its interest is solely derived from pleasing constrasts in the texture, form and color of foliage. While there are floral players that come into play at different times during the season, they're considered a bonus, as in the addition of Echinacea 'Sundowner' and an annual purple fountain grass (Pennisetum 'Rubrum'), which provide bloom color and movement to this scene later in the summer as illustrated in the second photo.
The foliage-driven planting in early June
A close-up view a couple of months later in mid-August.
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I talked with Kay Balmer from the Oregonian a couple weeks ago about designing garden paths. She shares the results of our conversation in this post on the Oregonian's Home and Garden blog. Thanks Kay!
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I have a small garden and most of the client gardens that I work in are quite small as well. Because space is limited, we aren't able to grow every plant that catches our eye, so we have to be ultra-choosy about what we include in our gardens. So I've come up with this way of thinking about it that; for lack of a better description, I call it "the goodness ratio."
It boils down to this: the larger the plant, the more rigorous the selection process.
In our small plots we can only grow a few large shrubs and/or small trees. And what I'm looking for in these larger plants is something that will really deliver through the seasons. More than likely we're going to require that it deliver more than one of these type of attributes: spring or summer bloom, fragrance, wonderful foliage, fall color, interesting bark and/or branching structure for winter interest, and so on.
Small plants that are especially lovely and or plants that share space well might be given a bit of a reprieve, the standard relaxed somewhat. Naturalizing spring bulbs such as crocus, anemone, species tulip, and allium are a good examples of this. Or plants that peak in winter or early spring that are then a good host for a summer blooming vine.
Small trees and shrubs that earn their keep
Here is a very small, very partial list of some plants that I turn to time and time again. I encourage you to think more about the "why" they made the list so that you can then add to it, creating your own list of hard-working plants to consider using in your garden. All are recommended because they deliver through the seasons, displaying at least three of these attributes: summer bloom, attractive foliage, fall color, fabulous bark, provide a strong contribution toward structure, and they're suitably sized for city gardens.
And the list could could go on and on ...but why don't you do this, check out Great Plant Picks for lots and lots of really great plants specifically recommended for their suitability to northwest gardens. But don't forget, be choosy.
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